We Are
by JewelsMax
Summary: Bella is 16 years old and part of a wealthy family. She gets slapped and cussed out daily by her mom and sis. What happens when they move and she meets silent and brooding Edward Cullen? And whats Bella's real relationship with her "little bro"? All human
1. Moved

I ran little 3-year-old Evan up the stairs to the room we both shared. My back and face hurt from the slaps and punches my family threw at me that night.

I was so angry and sad. Evan didn't have to see me getting beat, and I don't think he did. I'd put a hand over his eyes to keep him from seeing them beating me.

Once inside my room, I shut the door and locked it. I burst into tears and Evan, the angel, rubbed my back and kissed my cheek.

"Don't be sad," he said in his cute three-year-old accent.

I smiled at him and kissed his forehead.

"I won't be," I told him, "Not while you're here to make me feel better."

He kissed my cheek again and gave me a hug.

"I love you," he said.

"I love you too, baby," I answered, "Now, get in bed and go to sleep. The next few days will be hectic. We're moving."

"Moving? Where?" he asked excitedly.

"America," I answered.

"Yay!" he cheered.

I ruffled his hair affectionately.

"Yeah, yeah. But you have to go to sleep now," I said and he pouted.

"Go to sleep, now," I ordered.

He pouted again but I raised an eyebrow at him. He kept pouting while I helped him change into his pajamas. Then, he climbed into bed and I sang him to sleep. Not long after, he was under and wasn't going to be out of it until late next morning.

That's when I walked to a far corner in my room and cried. I hated this. I hated myself. I made sure to keep quiet so that Evan wouldn't wake up.

I walked to my drawer and pulled out a pair of scissors. I added two new cuts to my scar-decorated arms. Soon, the cuts would fade and blend in with the others. When I was done cutting, I felt a little better.

I still hated myself, though. I can't believe I made them do this. My family and I were moving from London to the USA, to a small town in Washington called something like Spoons or Knives or some other eating utensil like that.

It was sudden, but my mother, Renee Swan, insisted because I "was threatening the image of our family." Renee thought that moving to a small town would minimize the damage I could do. My older sister, Jessica Swan, of course blamed it on me too.

She was the one to slap me first tonight. Mother followed after her and then they took turns beating me. My father, Charlie, had done nothing but watch.

My family was very wealthy and we lived in London. Charlie and Renee owned and ran a famous recording business. Charlie was a round man with a balding head.

Jessica and Renee were the brunette cheerleading type. Light brown hair, hazel eyes, killer smile and curvy body. But they were pretty harsh, too. They were stuck up, cruel, and hateful. They were the ones who cussed and beat me on a regular basis. They were also the reason I cut myself.

Evan. Evan Swan looked a lot like me. He was my "little brother" in front of the media but only my family knew the real story about him, yet they blame me for what happened. This thought made tears spring to my eyes again but I quickly wiped them away.

I could never bring myself to regret Evan. He was the best "little brother" anyone could ask for. He was sweet and loving and I'm glad he hadn't taken on any of the personality traits from some of his other relatives.

He had chocolate brown eyes, like mine, and brown curly hair. He had adorable dimples. He was only 3 years old, whereas I was 16 and Jessica was 17.

I'd been getting slapped and cussed at since I was 8. My mom and sister found out that I could sing very, very well. The ability to sing could come in handy to run the recording business and they wanted Jessica to run the company with as little difficulties as possible when she was older. But, well, Jessica couldn't sing for shit.

So, that's when they started calling me names and slapping me. They made me feel like I was worthless. They'd tell me to stop singing and I wouldn't. I started cutting myself when I was 10. That meant I had an impressive amount of scars on my arms.

Singing was one of the only things that made me truly happy. I had about fourteen huge notebooks filled with original songs; all of them were my heart on paper. I was in a band. My band mates were all around my age but now I'd be leaving them behind. And why? Because my mom thought that I proposed a threat to the image the media had conjured up about us.

Dad was going to start another building near the town we were moving to. I bet all of those small-town people were in for a shock when my family moved there. I groaned into my pillow. Why me? I mentally berated myself for proving my family right when they said I "was a selfish bitch who didn't deserve to live."

I looked around my room. My family owned a huge mansion in London, but I insisted that Evan sleep in my room. I knew my family hated him too, just by association with me. I always felt so guilty for having brought that upon him.

I watched him as his chest rose and fell while he slept. I sighed and looked around the room again. I had to start packing. When I said that Renee suddenly suggested we moved, I meant it. We were moving in four days, which meant the next few days would be a blur of back pain from packing.

I sighed and stood up. First, I packed up all of Ethan's clothes and games. After all his belongings were packed, I moved onto my clothes. Once my clothes were packed, I moved on to my CDs, books, portable recording equipment, song notebooks, music sheets, and my guitars.

I had two guitars, one electric and one acoustic. On both guitars, I had a bunch of signatures from famous singers and bands. My guitars were two more of my most prized possessions.

When I was done, I looked around my room. All of Ethan's and my belongings were now in duffel bags and suitcases. I checked to see if I missed anything and stared at my room's walls. I would miss this place. Never mind all the times I'd cried my eyes out. This was still my home. Ethan's home and mine.

My eyes filled with tears at this thought. I fell asleep that night and didn't dream. The family spent the next few days packing the things we were going to bring to our soon to be hometown.

The day of the move, I sat staring at my ceiling with Ethan for the longest time. Then Jessica burst into my room.

"Hey, bitch and bitch spawn," she sneered, "The moving trucks are here. You better get your stupid crap to them right now because once Dad has everything else in the trucks, he's not going to wait for you to get your stuff in them. So, you better hurry up, you fucking hoe."

I jumped up and grabbed the suitcases that were filled with Ethan's clothes and my recording equipment, clothes, and CDs. I kept my notebooks, sheet music, and instruments with me. I ran downstairs to give our stuff to the moving men. They put it in the truck and I thanked them before running back up to my room to get Ethan.

My family climbed into our individual cars, mine a red Ferrari with Bullet for my Valentine blasting through the speakers and Ethan as a passenger, and drove to the airport. My family had a private jet. About two and a half hours later, all of our stuff was loaded and we were on our way to America.

I turned my iPod on and brought it to earsplitting volume. I listened to it the whole way to America with Ethan's head in my lap. Once there, I made it even louder to drown out all the voices of the paparazzi and the clicks of the cameras. I carried Ethan and snapped at the people who got to close to him.

When we finally managed to get out of the airport, I saw my car was already here. Don't ask me how it got here before I did, it just did. I belted Ethan in and then got in myself to follow Renee's and Charlie's limousine with Jessica's pink buggy following after Ethan and me.

It took us about two hours to arrive in the town, which I now knew was called Forks, and to arrive at the house. It was massive. It was white and two stories. I saw a room that had a huge stained glass bay window. There wasn't a picture of anything on it but it was beautiful. And by huge, I meant eight of my car long and four of my car wide.

The setting sun was playing with the colors of the window. It was made of blue, yellow, red and green glass. But the window was in a weird location. It looked to be in between the first and second story rooms.

"That room is Ethan's and mine," I said, pointing to the room with the bay window.

Jessica frowned and rolled her eyes at me before striding into the house to find a room that looked better than mine. _Good luck with that_, I thought meanly but scolded myself for thinking like that.

I walked into the house with Ethan's hand in mine and grinned at the huge foyer. It was a huge room with a fancy chandelier hanging above it. There were two stairways, one on each wall that branched to the left and then to the right. I walked up the one to the left, thinking that the room with the bay window would be that way.

Ethan and I looked into each of the rooms. But none of them had the room with the bay window. I remembered the window's location and looked into the rooms again, looking if any of them had any other doors.

I finally found a room that had another door, other than the door that lead to the closet. I opened it and saw a small staircase. I went down the steps, with Ethan following me, and came into a vast room. It was empty, except for a grand piano in the far corner of the room.

This was the room with the huge bay window. I now saw that the window stretched from floor to ceiling, taking up one whole wall. The fading sunlight streamed through the window, coloring the wood floors in yellow, blue, green and red. The room was perfect. And I knew just what to do with it.

This would be my music room, where I wrote my music, played my instruments and sang like no one could hear me, and Ethan's playroom, where he could play with his toys without a care in the world.

I realized that no one probably could hear us from in here. I was thrilled and this made Ethan thrilled. We ran up the small staircase and out of the room, counting which door it was and then ran outside to grab all of our stuff.

I lugged all of our stuff to our room. I didn't bother to put our clothes away just yet. I went straight to our playroom to set up Ethan's toys and my instruments and recording equipment. I studied the bay window, finding out that I could open it. And that's what I did.

The fresh air cleared my head and I enjoyed how the sun was facing this room when it set. I also enjoyed how the warmth played on my skin. I smiled at the sun and noticed a house not that far away from ours.

It was facing ours and was separated only by a dense wood that lasted only for about 20 feet. It was identical to ours, even down to the bay window. I saw that their bay window was open. I didn't spy anybody inside, so I kept our window open.

Then, I turned around to set up my recording equipment. I'd made a song a few days ago and was ready to record it. Ethan watched me as I set up and then start to record. He claimed that he loved to watch me sing new songs and tell me if it was good or not.

I recorded the melody on the acoustic and then electric guitar. I played them back as a track and it was coming together well. Ethan loved it, as well. Then, I set up the microphone stand, facing the bay window and Ethan. Then, I sang the lyrics from my heart.

"_**Here we go, here we go, here we go.**_

_**Yeah, just let it out, let it out, let it out.**_

_**Scream, sing, let's talk it out.**_

_**And let me hear you.**_

_**Just scream and sing for me.**_

_**Oh, tell me what you're feeling.**_

_**Say to me what's going on in your head.**_

_**Tell my why you look like you wanna be dead.**_

_**Just sing, or scream, your heart out.**_

_**Tell. Me. What. You're all about.**_

_**Tell me baby, what's wrong?**_

_**I see the pain in your eyes.**_

_**I'm singing this song**_

_**For you.**_

_**And I know you're wise**_

_**Beyond your years**_

_**So tell me baby, what's happening?**_

_**Why don't you talk to me?**_

_**Baby, just tell me.**_

_**Yeah?**_

_**Here we go, here we go, here we go.**_

_**Yeah, just let it out, let it out, let it out.**_

_**Scream, sing, let's talk it out.**_

_**Just scream and sing for me.**_

_**Oh, tell me what you're feeling.**_

_**Say to me what's going on in your head.**_

_**Tell me why you look like you wanna be dead.**_

_**Just sing, or scream your heart out.**_

_**Tell. Me. What. You're all about.**_"

I finished the song and walked over to the machine to stop recording. I heard clapping from Ethan as well as from a distance. I smiled at Ethan before I looked outside the window to see a beautiful spiky-black-haired short girl clapping from the other house. I blushed and turned around. I was about to hide when she called to me.

"Wait!" she said.

I turned around and waved. She waved enthusiastically back and I couldn't help but smile at her energy.

"I'm Alice," she said.

"I'm Bella and this is Ethan," I answered, softly.

"What?" she asked, cupping her ear with her hand.

"I'm Bella," I said, louder and then pointed to Ethan, "And this is Ethan."

"Nice to meet you, Bella and Ethan, and I have to say it. Bella, that was amazing. Was that song _yours_?" she asked.

I smiled shyly at her before replying, "Yeah. It was… I was just, you know, playing around and stuff…"

She smiled dazzlingly at me. "It was good. You should write more. I've got to go now, but it was cool meeting you two. I'll talk to you later," she said and then turned around and walked away.

She disappeared and I sighed and lay down on the floor next to Ethan.

"Can I call you Mommy now that we're home?" Ethan asked.

"Yes, baby, you can call me Mommy now," I answered.

He threw his arms around me and I laughed into his hair. He rubbed my scarred arms. (A few times, he'd asked about my scars but I'd skillfully changed the subject)

"That song was good, Mommy!" Ethan crowed, "I love you!"

"I love you, too, baby. I love you too," I said.

Ethan was thrilled that he could finally call me Mommy. And that was the truth. I was his mother. I gave birth to him at thirteen years old.

I'd been raped in an alley when I'd tried to run away from home. I was able to walk away from it, but a few weeks later, I found out I was pregnant with Ethan.

I'd told my parents and my sister that I'd been raped and that's how I got pregnant but they didn't believe me. That's why they always called me a whore.

I decided to have the baby and not give him up. Renee was pissed that she had to pretend that it was her son, but I convinced her to let me keep him.

Ethan had been born just four days before my birthday, on September 15th. Mom had forbidden me to go out of the house during the nine-month process. A doctor had come to the house to give me my check-ups.

At first, I thought my baby was a curse, but then he started nudging me when I cried and so I started to love him. The birth was very painful and Charlie, Renee, and Jessica didn't help seeing as they were all cussing me out during the whole thing.

When it was done and the midwives placed Ethan in my arms, I was blissful. He was perfect and beautiful. Even my family was quiet after the birth.

Ever since he'd been born, I'd been taking care of him. And that was when the flashbacks started. I felt a hand on my cheek.

"What's the matter, mommy?" Ethan asked, "Why are you crying?"

"No reason, baby, no reason," I answered, a little surprised at having shed tears without knowing, "I just love you so much."

And that was the truth. No matter what happened, I would always love my baby, my son. I hugged him to my chest and he hugged me back. Then we heard the doorbell ring. Ethan and I shared a look.

I picked him up and carried him to the top of the stairs, down the hallway, and to the top of the main stairs. From where we were, we could see just two people. They were both movie star beautiful. The man was blonde and young. The woman had a heart shaped face and caramel colored hair. She was also very young and beautiful.

"Mommy," Ethan asked loudly, "Who are they?"

Everyone's heads turned to Ethan and me, and we were in trouble. When Ethan had spoken, he had spoken directly to me, clearly calling me Mommy. I froze. Charlie, Renee, and Jessica were giving me death glares while the two others looked at us curiously. I swallowed loudly.

How the hell was I going to fix this?


	2. Introduced

_Shit, shit, shit!_ I thought. _How do I get us out of this?_ I plastered a smile on my face and looked at the two people in our house. I looked at Renee, unwillingly.

"Yeah, Mom," I asked, "Who are they?"

Renee sent me a death glare and Jessica smirked evilly at me before they turned to our guests.

"Our neighbors," Renee answered, barely hiding her contempt for me.

"Hello there," I said to our neighbors, "I'm Bella. It's nice to meet you."

"I'm Carlisle Cullen and this is my wife, Esme Cullen," the man introduced himself and the woman to me.

"Nice to meet you," I said.

"Likewise," he answered.

Then, Carlisle and Esme turned to my parents. I breathed a sigh of relief and quickly whispered in Ethan's ears.

"Baby, I'm so sorry," I whispered, "But you can't call me Mommy in front of other people."

He pouted but I kissed his cheek and he brightened up. How had I ever ended up with a little boy who loved me so? I hugged him closer for a moment, before walking down the stairs with him in my arms.

I sat down on the bottom-most step and watched as Charlie and Renee ushered in our neighbors. After they let Carlisle and Esme in, five teenagers my age walked into the foyer.

All of them were extremely good looking. One of them was really burly, muscular with curly dark hair. He was holding hands with a stunning tall, skinny blonde girl. Another boy was tall, lanky, and less muscular, but still looked strong. He was holding hands with the girl I'd met through the bay window. She was very short, with spiky, black hair.

The last boy was probably, easily, the most attractive. He had bronze hair and had less muscle, though you could still see a hint of it through his black t-shirt. He also had striking green eyes. He kept his gaze locked with the floor. He seemed… sad.

Jessica, of course, began to throw herself at them once the adults moved to the living room. She looked so desperate and shallow that I had to laugh. She turned to glare at me. Then, she quickly walked up to me and slapped me with the back of her hand. She moved her gaze to Ethan and I spoke up.

"I told you that you could screw with me all you want," I seethed, "But you can't lay a single finger on Ethan, so don't get any ideas."

The other five teenagers were staring in shock at us. Even the bronze-haired boy was staring at me. But, I couldn't have been any more oblivious to them.

Jessica looked at Ethan for a long time and I practically growled at her. I moved so that I was covering Ethan with my own body.

"Don't forget your place, you fucking whore-ass bitch," she sneered at me.

She turned around and sashayed, though "twitched" would be a more accurate word, towards the still shocked teenagers.

"Can you believe how disrespectful little sisters can get these days?" she said, rolling her eyes.

I put a hand to my forehead and stood up. Ethan pulled on my arm, wanting to be carried. I smiled down at my baby and pulled him into my arms. I turned around and began walking up the stairs.

"Wait!" Alice called to me.

I turned around.

"Hey," she said.

"Hey," I answered.

"Well," she said, "Come down here and greet us politely like you should."

I could tell she was joking but her choice of words made me flinch. They sounded like something Renee would say if I did something wrong. I shook my head and walked back down the stairs.

"I'm Alice," she said.

Ethan refused to let go of me so I had to shake hands with my other arm, the arm with the most scars. I forgot about it, though, so I just stuck it out to shake her hand.

She stared at it incredulously, looking it up and down. I saw that everyone was staring at my arm. I looked at it and remembered that all of my scars were highly visible since I was only in shorts and a short-sleeved There For Tomorrow shirt.

I looked down at the floor and away. I hid my arm behind my back. Jessica smirked at me and shook her head.

"What a freak," she said to the five teenagers.

I looked around, trying to find a way out but finding none.

"Yeah," I muttered, "Er… Nice to meet you all."

I turned around and tried to run up the stairs as fast as I could, but Alice stopped me once again.

"Wait!" she pleaded.

I turned around and walked back down the stairs, keeping my gaze on the floor.

"This is Emmet," she said, pointing to the big guy, "The girl hanging on his arm is Rosalie."

I looked up quickly to give them a small smile. Ethan had his hand on my cheek and was looking worriedly at me.

"Baby," I whispered to him, "It's okay. I'm fine."

He nodded. Alice went on and pointed to the boy she was holding hands with.

"This is Jasper," she said.

I gave him a small smile too. Then, Alice turned to the last boy.

"That's Edward," she said.

He looked up at me and I gave him another small smile. I was eager to get out of there. Everyone was looking at me pityingly and I wanted none of it.

"Hi," I said, "I'm Bella." I pointed to Jessica, "That's my older sister Jessica," then I pointed to Ethan, "And the little boy hanging onto my arm here is Ethan."

When I introduced him, he blushed and hid his face in my shoulder. I messed up his hair playfully.

"Say, hi, Ethan," I said, "Say hi, baby."

He looked up at the five teenagers.

"Hi," he said softly.

Alice squealed. "You are adorable! How old are you?"

"Three," he replied.

"Can I hold you?" she asked.

He shook his head fervently and clung to me tightly.

"Sh-sh-sh-sh-sh," I said to calm him down, "It's okay. She's nice."

I turned to Alice.

"I'm so sorry," I said, "He's really shy."

"He'll let _me_ hold him!" Jessica announced.

I turned at her to glare at her. She was holding her arms out to Ethan and he was practically cowering in my arms.

"No," I told her flatly.

She stepped up to me threateningly. Her gaze flicked to Ethan and I saw a flash of satisfaction in her eyes.

"Say again?" she asked.

"No," I repeated.

"Once more?" she asked.

My adorable baby boy spoke for himself, then.

"No," he said, "I want her to hold me."

He pointed to me and I kissed him on the cheek. Jessica looked like steam was about to blow from her ears. She was glaring daggers at my son, but I think I saw a flash of triumph in her eyes. I growled at her again.

"Stay. Away. From. Him," I hissed.

"Little siblings can be such a burden sometimes," she complained to the group of teenagers.

I shook my head and glanced up at the ceiling. Then, I closed my eyes and took deep breaths to keep from punching my older sister.

When I looked back up, I met the green-eyed boy's, Edward's, I think, gaze. He quickly looked down, as did I.

I took a deep breath. I was tired of this.

"Baby?" I asked Ethan, "Wanna go upstairs now? We can play with your toys."

"Will you sing for me?" he asked.

"Of course, baby, of course," I answered.

He nodded and I abruptly turned around. I practically ran up the steps and to my room. But, that didn't stop me from hearing Jessica sneer something obscene to the group of teenagers. I closed the door and carried my son down the small staircase into the bay window room.

The sun had now set and the window was still open. I could see the stars in the sky and I showed them to Ethan. He looked up at them and then laughed.

"Mommy!" he said, suddenly, "Sing for me."

I laughed.

"What would you like me to sing?"

"My lullaby!" he yelled.

I smiled at my baby.

"I love you, did you know that?" I asked him.

"Yes," he answered, "And I love you."

I laughed and kissed him on the cheek. I carried him and sat him down on the piano bench. I grabbed my acoustic guitar and sat down on the floor. I quickly made sure it was tuned. Then, I began to strum and sing softly…

_**"Baby, you're young.**_

_**Baby, you're smart.**_

_**Baby, you're loved.**_

_**So don't give up.**_

_**No, not on this**_

_**Just yet.**_

_**This moment**_

_**In time is**_

_**Ours, only ours**_

_**To remember**_

_**To treasure**_

_**To desire**_

_**I'll watch you sleep**_

_**Till the morning sun**_

_**Rises in the east**_

_**Baby, don't worry**_

_**I'll always be here for you**_

_**I'll be watching over you**_

_**Even when I'm away**_

_**I'll be there for you**_

_**I'll never leave you**_

_**Baby, you're young**_

_**Baby, you're smart.**_

_**Baby, you're loved.**_

_**So take a deep**_

_**Breath with me**_

_**We'll face 'em head on**_

_**This fight**_

_**At this time is,**_

_**Ours, only ours**_

_**To remember.**_

_**To treasure**_

_**To desire**_

_**I'll watch you sleep**_

_**Till the morning sun**_

_**Rises in the east**_

_**Baby, don't worry**_

_**I'll always be here for you**_

_**I'll be watching over you**_

_**Even when I'm away**_

_**I'll be there for you**_

_**I'll never leave you**_

_**I'll put your fears to rest**_

_**I'll help you through your years**_

_**I'll wipe away your tears**_

_**I'll do my best**_

_**Baby, you're young**_

_**Baby, you're smart.**_

_**Baby, you're loved**_

_**So don't forget**_

_**You're valued**_

_**Don't forget**_

_**You mean the world to me**_

_**I'll watch you sleep**_

_**Till the morning sun**_

_**Rises in the east**_

_**Baby, don't worry**_

_**I'll always be here for you**_

_**I'll be watching over you**_

_**Even when I'm away**_

_**I'll be there for you**_

_**I'll never leave you**_

_**Baby, I'll be here**_

_**When you wake up**_

_**When you go to sleep**_

_**I'll be here**_

_**To protect you.**_

_**I'll be here**_

_**To love you**_

_**Always"**_

I finished singing and then strummed the last few chords. Ethan smiled widely at me. He clapped enthusiastically and I laughed.

"That was amazing," a voice said from behind me.

"Jesus!" I yelled and jumped, trying to scramble away from the voice.

I looked up to find Alice standing in the far corner of the room, with Emmet, Jasper, Rose and Edward.

"How did you get in here?" I asked.

"You forget," Emmet said, "That our houses are identical in every way."

He boomed a laugh and I couldn't help but laugh with him. Ethan seemed to get scared by Emmet's loud laugh. I took his hand in mine and he smiled up at me.

"Oh," I answered, staring at the floor, "How long have you guys been standing there?"

"A while," Rosalie said, smiling.

I studied the floor.

"Where's Jessica?" I asked.

"Ugh," Jasper said, "I don't know but I'm just glad she's not here."

I laughed and Jasper looked like he didn't know why he blurted that out. I raised an arm to cover my mouth and everybody's eyes fell to my scarred arm. I quickly hid both arms behind my back.

I gave it up and let my arms fall to my sides. Then, I made a decision and then held them out for everyone to see, just to get it over with. I felt a tear roll down my cheek. I looked up to see everyone looking at me.

Emmet, Jasper, Rosalie, and Alice were looking at me with concern. Edward was looking at me like he understood. Our eyes met and I think I saw that he really did understand. He silently held up his arms and I could see that he also had scars, but I couldn't see any recent ones.

I raised an eyebrow at him. He nodded. So, he'd been a cutter too. But… he doesn't cut himself anymore. I took a deep breath but it hitched. Tears filled my eyes and I broke down. I plopped onto the floor, and put my head in my hands.

Alice surprised me by walking up to me and throwing her arms around me.

"You're okay," she said, smiling, "You're strong, you know that? And you know that you'll always have the five of us, six including Ethan, right?"

I laughed bitterly but before I could argue she cut me off.

"Don't argue with me," she warned.

I laughed again and hugged her back. Eventually, I wiped my tears off my cheeks. I took a deep breath.

"Okay, so… who wants to hear another song?" I asked.

"I do! I do! I do!" Emmet said, bouncing up and down like a little girl.

I laughed and pulled out my guitar.

"Ladies and gentlemen, your concert is about to begin, and I will now be taking requests…" I said.

As I played and sang for them, I couldn't help but feel like I just might actually have found a few friends who like me for me.

I furiously hoped that they wouldn't leave me if or when they found out about Ethan… though that might be a little too much to ask for.


	3. Shaken

**Hey, guys.**

**Just a quick AN.**

**I encourage you to read my other fanfic, which I am still working on.**

**It's called Differences.**

**Please check it out.**

**Oh, and I hope I did an okay job with Edward's POV.**

**Please R&R**

** -Jules  
**

* * *

**EPOV**

Carlisle and Esme were making all of us, even those not part of the family (AKA Rose and Jasper, the Hale twins), introduce ourselves to our new neighbors from London.

The little pixie Alice was, of course, jumping up and down with enthusiasm. Emmet seemed excited enough to meet somebody else our age and Rose and Jasper were okay with it. I was silent, as always.

I was always silent, ever since Carlisle and Esme had adopted me when I was ten years old. That means I was silent for six long years. I'd finally stopped cutting myself about two years ago, though the idea was always a last resort in my mind.

I wasn't one of Carlisle and Esme's children. I was only Carlisle's nephew. My father had beaten my mother, Carlisle's sister, to death and my father was now in jail serving a life sentence.

Carlisle took it upon himself to raise me as his own child. Alice and Emmet were my age. They were twins, but they were so different-looking. At times, though, they shared the same enthusiasm, which is a little disconcerting because of Emmet's size.

We'd walked to the identical house not too far from ours in silence. I lagged behind, not wanting to meet anybody new.

When we arrived at the front door, a round and balding man opened the door to us. He seemed happy enough. He called for his wife and his daughter.

"Hello, there," Carlisle said, "I'm Carlisle and this is my wife, Esme."

He stuck his hand out to the man.

"Hello," the man said, "I'm Charlie, this is my wife Renee, and my daughter Jessica."

From my position at the back of the clump of teenagers, I could see the stairways. I saw as a girl in a There For Tomorrow shirt and shorts appear at the top of the stairs with a little boy in her arms.

"Mommy," the boy asked the girl, "Who are they?"

The girl looked shocked.

"Yeah, Mom," she said, "Who are they?"

"Our neighbors," Renee said to the girl.

"Hello there," the girl said to Carlisle and Esme (I doubt she could have seen the five teenagers still on their front porch), I'm Bella. It's nice to meet you."

"I'm Carlisle Cullen," he replied, "And this is my wife, Esme Cullen."

"Nice to meet you," she repeated.

"Likewise," he answered.

When Carlisle and Esme started talking to Charlie and Renee, I saw the girl, Bella, sag in relief and whisper something in the boy's ear that made him pout. But, Bella kissed his cheek and the boy brightened up.

She walked down the stairs and sat on the bottom step, laying the boy's head in her lap. Then, Charlie and Renee asked Carlisle and Renee in. The five of us walked in and I stared at the floor again.

Jessica, the eldest, walked up to us and started throwing herself at us.

"Hey, guys," she said, "I'm the cool one in this family and you guys seem cool. We'll make pretty cool friends…" and kept going on and on.

Bella left out a small laugh, and I looked up because the sound was beautiful. I quickly looked back down at the floor. I heard Jessica's walk across the room to Bella, then I heard a resounding _smack!_

I looked up in shock. I saw that Jessica had just slapped Bella with the back of her hand and had begun to look at the boy. Bella spoke up and what she said surprised me.

"I told you that you can screw with me all you want," she said angrily, "But you can't lay a single finger on Ethan, so don't get any ideas."

I was stunned. She… let… them… hit her? She didn't fight back? Why not? I stared at Bella curiously. I saw Jessica look at the boy, Ethan, I guessed, for a long time. Finally, Bella moved her body and the boy's so that she was blocking him from Jessica's line of sight.

"Don't forget your place, you fucking whore-ass bitch," Jessica said to Bella.

I thought Bella would say something, speak up, but she didn't. She just rubbed the boy's back comfortingly, like she didn't care what happened to her as long as the boy was okay. Jessica walked back to my family.

"Can you believe how disrespectful little sisters can get these days?" she asked, haughtily.

Jessica tried to bat her eyelashes at me, clearly because I was the only single one, but I quickly looked back down at the floor. I heard a sigh, but didn't look up.

"Wait!" Alice called.

I looked up quickly to see Bella stop at the stairs and turn around.

"Hey," she said.

"Hey," Alice answered, "Well, come down here and greet us like you should."

I heard Bella walk down the stairs and then stop in front of us.

"I'm Alice," my cousin answered.

It was silent so I took it that Alice was shaking hands with Bella or something, but it was too silent. I looked up to find everyone staring at Bella's scarred arm.

There were tons of scars and I recognized them as ones that she inflicted on herself. But… there were so _many_ of them. I could barely see regular skin. She was a present cutter.

Jessica smirked at her and shook her head. Bella hid her arm behind her back.

"What a freak," Jessica said to us.

None of us reacted at first. We were really shocked. Bella didn't really seem the type to be a cutter. I silently studied her.

She had brown hair and beautiful chocolate brown eyes. She looked tired and her cheek was still red from the slap. She was beautiful, but she looked so sad.

"Yeah," she said softly, "Er…Nice to meet you."

Suddenly, she turned around and ran up the stairs.

"Wait!" Alice called again.

I looked back down at the floor and heard her walk to Alice and stop in front of her. Alice took turns introducing us. When she introduced me, I looked up quickly. She gave me a small smile and for some reason, something in my chest stirred.

I quickly looked back down at the floor.

"Hi," Bella said as if we didn't know already (Well, I guess we weren't sure about the boy, but still), "I'm Bella. That's my older sister Jessica." Her tone changed to adoration when she introduced the boy she was carrying.

"And the little boy hanging onto my arm here is Ethan," she said.

Ethan blushed and hid his face in Bella's arm. She ruffled his hair affectionately.

"Say hi, Ethan," she said to him, "Say hi, baby."

I immediately sensed that Bella had a sort of maternal feeling to her little brother. And those two looked almost identical. They had the same color hair and same color eyes.

"Hi," Ethan said, softly.

Alice squealed.

"You're adorable!" she squeaked, "How old are you?"

"Three," the little boy answered.

"Can I hold you?" she asked.

He shook his head fervently and clung to Bella tightly.

"Sh-sh-sh-sh-sh," she said to calm him down, "It's okay. She's nice."

She turned to Alice.

"I'm so sorry," Bella said, "He's really shy."

"He'll let _me_ hold him!" Jessica announced.

Bella turned to glare at her. She was holding her arms out to Ethan and he was practically cowering in her arms.

"No," Bella told her flatly.

She stepped up to her threateningly.

"Say again?" she asked.

"No," Bella repeated.

"Once more?" she asked.

Then, Ethan spoke.

"No," he said, "I want her to hold me."

He pointed to Bella and she kissed him on the cheek. Jessica looked like steam was about to blow from her ears. She was glaring daggers at Ethan. Bella practically growled at her.

"Stay. Away. From. Him," Bella said, exaggerating each word.

"Little siblings can be such a burden sometimes," she complained to us.

I looked up to watch Bella. She seemed frustrated. She looked up at the ceiling, closing her eyes and taking a deep breath. She looked back up and her gaze met mine. I quickly looked back down at the floor.

I ignored whatever nonsense Jessica was spouting to my family and tried to listen to what Bella was saying to Ethan.

All I heard was Ethan ask, "Will you sing for me?"

Then, Bella respond, "Of course, baby, of course."

Then, she ran quickly up the stairs, leaving us with Jessica.

I was curious and then shocked. I hadn't been curious about anything since the… incident. I had rarely felt anything. I just went through the motions. I didn't feel anything while I moved around each day.

But, this girl, Bella, she'd made my heart jump a little in my chest and she made me feel like I should help her. It was just a flicker of emotion, but still. That was the most emotion I'd felt in over two years.

It made me want to know her more. I vaguely registered that we were now following Jessica up the stairs. I think she was taking us to her room, but my thoughts were filled with Bella.

Why hadn't she fought back when Jessica slapped her? Did that happen to her often? Why was she so protective of her little brother? Why did she look ready to give up her life for him?

"Hey, guys," Alice said, breaking me out of my thoughts, "Let's try to find Bella."

"Sure. Anything to get away from this conceited biatch," Rose said.

Alice abruptly turned around and tiptoed to the other hallway. We followed silently behind her. We walked into a room and I saw the extra door.

Back at out house, this was my room. I knew this lead to a room with a huge bay window. We heard a guitar strumming and a beautiful voice singing coming from the bay window room.

Alice lead us silently inside and down the small staircase. We saw Bella playing her guitar and singing something to Ethan. From where we were, we got the profile view of her face. I listened to the words she sang.

"_**I'll watch you sleep**_

_**Till the morning sun**_

_**Rises in the east**_

_**Baby, don't worry**_

_**I'll always be here for you**_

_**I'll be watching over you**_

_**Even when I'm away**_

_**I'll be there for you**_

_**I'll never leave you**_"

Whoa. She sang amazingly. The song sounded sort of like a lullaby. I saw Ethan looking at Bella with love and adoration. I fell into the trance of Bella's voice again.

"_**I'll put your fears to rest**_

_**I'll help you through your years**_

_**I'll wipe away your tears**_

_**I'll do my best**_

_**Baby, you're young**_

_**Baby, you're smart.**_

_**Baby, you're loved**_

_**So don't forget**_

_**You're valued**_

_**Don't forget**_

_**You mean the world to me**_"

I was shocked. She could really _sing_. She also looked happy in the light. It seems that singing makes her really happy. She smiled slightly and I swear my heart stopped and then launched into overdrive. She was amazing.

Once again, Bella began to sing and I felt myself swaying to the slow beat.

"_**I'll watch you sleep**_

_**Till the morning sun**_

_**Rises in the east**_

_**Baby, don't worry**_

_**I'll always be here for you**_

_**I'll be watching over you**_

_**Even when I'm away**_

_**I'll be there for you**_

_**I'll never leave you**_

_**Baby, I'll be here**_

_**When you wake up**_

_**When you go to sleep**_

_**I'll be here**_

_**To protect you.**_

_**I'll be here**_

_**To love you**_

_**Always**_"

She strummed the final chords and all was silent in the room. I looked quickly up to my family and Jazz and Rose to see all of the mouths hanging open. I looked back down at the floor, feeling a bit amused.

I was shocked, too. Bella's song had made me feel a lot of emotions in the short amount of time I heard her sing. Her voice sounded sad at some parts, and that made me feel sad. Her voice sounded angry at some parts, so I felt a flicker of anger.

But throughout most of the song, she sounded happy and content with her life. This made my heartache and long to be like that. I'd felt all of these different emotions in the span of about two minutes.

That was way more emotion that I'd felt in 6 years. This girl that I'd barely met had made me feel almost… alive, again.

"That was amazing," Alice said.

Bella jumped and yelled, "Jesus!" in response.

"How did you get in here?" Bella asked.

"You forget," Emmet answered, "That our houses are identical."

He boomed a laugh and Ethan seemed scared. Bella took his hand in hers and he immediately calmed down.

"Oh," Bella said, "How long have you been standing there?"

"A while," Rose said, smiling.

"Where's Jessica?" Bella asked.

"Ugh," Jasper answered, "I don't know but I'm just glad she's not here."

Bella laughed and then brought her arm up to cover her mouth. Everyone's eyes fell on Bella's scarred arm. She hid both arms behind her back and then looked up to find all of us looking at her.

I looked back down at the floor, to try to make it less uncomfortable for her. I heard her make a small sigh.

I looked up to see her holding out her arms for all of us to see. There were so many scars. I looked up to see Bella's face and saw a tear fall onto her cheek.

Our eyes met, and I tried to tell her that I understood with my eyes. I silently held up my own arms to show her my scars.

She raised an eyebrow at me and I nodded. She understood that I'd been a cutter too. She took a deep breath and we all heard it hitch. She plopped down onto the floor, put her head in her hands, and cried.

Alice walked up to her and hugged her.

"You're okay," she said, "You'll always have us five and Ethan, you know? You're strong, you know that?"

Bella laughed bitterly.

"Don't argue with me," Alice warned.

Bella laughed, genuinely, and then hugged Alice back. Her tears stopped and then she wiped the tears off her cheeks.

"Okay, so," she said, "Who wants to hear another song?" she asked.

Emmet had one of his girly enthusiasm fits.

"I do! I do! I do!" he said, bouncing up and down.

Bella laughed again, music to my ears, and pulled out her guitar.

"Ladies and gentlemen," she said, your concert is about to begin, and I will now be taking requests…"

She played and sang for us the rest of the night and I couldn't help but feel like I was crushing on her.

Could I finally be starting to _feel_ again?


	4. Distanced

Alice and the others had to leave about three hours later. My throat was kind of sore from all the singing I did, but I had a lot of fun.

I walked them to the front door, laughing, smiling, and joking the whole way. Renee, Charlie and Jessica all glared at me as we made our way down the stairs. I still held Ethan in my arms, though he was nodding off into my chest.

At the door, the five of them turned to me. Edward hadn't smiled all night, and I had the strange urge to change that. He was looking back down at the floor.

"That was really fun," Alice said.

"Yeah, you're an amazing singer," Rose added.

"You're pretty cool," Emmet said.

"I agree with the other three," Jasper said.

Edward said nothing, just as he had during the whole night. He hadn't said a single word. But, Edward did look up at me. He gave me an almost imperceptible smile, but I caught the microscopic upturning of the sides of his lips before looking back down at the floor.

"Thanks," I said, "I had a lot of fun, too."

I gave them a genuine smile. I said goodnight to Carlisle and Esme and then they were gone. I was left in the foyer with a furious Charlie, Renee, and Jessica.

"Mom!" Jessica whined, as soon as the Cullens had gone, "Isabella stole my friends!"

"How dare you!" Renee yelled at me, "You little whore, as if they'd want to be friends with you if they knew you already have a son!"

"I doubt she told them," Jessica said.

"Well, you should. You should do them the favor and make them hate you now before they start to like you. Though I don't know why anyone would like you," Renee said.

"She's probably just sleeping with all of them," Jessica said, "Even the girls."

"What a filthy person. Go to your room, bitch," Renee said.

I sighed and ran up the stairs to my room. I lay Ethan down on the bed and kissed him goodnight. My poor baby was already knocked out.

I breathed in deep as I was struck by inspiration. I quietly ran down to my music room and started recording my voice, without any instruments. I thought I saw movement from the Cullen's house in the bay window but ignored it. I just sang.

_**"We're feeling lost**_

_**We're feeling down**_

_**We're feeling drowned**_

_**But it's nothing new**_

_**We're feeling exhausted**_

_**We're feeling like we'll be damne**_

_**We're feeling like we can do better than this**_

_**But it's nothing new**_

_**These negative feelings find us somehow**_

_**No matter how hard we run**_

_**We keep running away**_

_**Life is hard all around**_

_**Snarky and sarcastic**_

_**We live to push people away**_

_**Hurt and pushed around**_

_**We live to be the punching bag**_

_**We're feeling lost**_

_**We're feeling down**_

_**We're feeling drowned**_

_**But it's nothing new**_

_**We're feeling exhausted**_

_**We're feeling like we'll be damned**_

_**We're feeling like we can do better than this**_

_**But it's nothing new**_

_**We're used to being alone like this**_

_**Relying on nothing and no one**_

_**We're the outliers**_

_**We're the outcasts**_

_**God, save us all**_

_**Been breaking hearts**_

_**Been dropping names**_

_**Been acting like we own the damn place**_

_**And tonight, we do**_

_**Tonight, we do**_

_**We're feeling lost**_

_**We're feeling down**_

_**We're feeling drowned**_

_**But it's nothing new**_

_**We're feeling exhausted**_

_**We're feeling like we'll be damned**_

_**We're feeling like we can do better than this**_

_**But it's nothing new**_

_**Pushed around, pushing away**_

_**We're ourselves tonight**_

_**Dropping the act**_

_**We're ourselves tonight**_

_**Dropping the mask**_

_**We're feeling lost**_

_**We're feeling down**_

_**We're feeling drowned**_

_**But it's nothing new**_

_**We're feeling exhausted**_

_**We're feeling like we'll be damned**_

_**We're feeling like we can do better than this**_

_**But it's nothing new**_"

I sighed. I stopped recording and looked around the room. I turned off the light but sat in the moonlight. I closed my eyes and a slight breeze ruffled my hair. I stared up at the sky and Renee's words flitted through my mind. I didn't realize I was crying until the breeze ruffled my hair again, cooling the hot tears on my cheeks.

I couldn't stand the temptation. I grabbed a pair of scissors and made two more cuts on my arm, savoring the feeling of the pain slipping away.

"BELLA!" Charlie bellowed, "GET YOUR WHORE OF AN ASS DOWN HERE, NOW!!"

When I walked into the foyer, Renee and Jessica were annoyed. I sighed and stepped in front of them. I held my arms away from my body and waited for the blows to come. And they came, all right.

Jessica punched me in the gut, while Renee practically clawed at my cheeks. It wasn't long before I fell to the ground, my skull smacking on the tile. I cried out as either Renee or Jessica's foot made contact with one of my ribs and I heard a loud _snap!_ But my beating was cut short when the doorbell rang.

Jessica and Renee froze and their eyes widened in fear. Jessica dragged me to the corner and shielded me with her body while Charlie opened the door. It was Emmet, Alice, and Edward.

I wondered why they were here again but I was in too much pain to really register what was going on. Renee and Jessica had been hitting with extra force tonight. I heard Alice, Emmet, and Edward say that they forgot something and they were asking for me so that I could go get it for them.

Everything seemed a little hazy. Without thinking, I stood up painfully and staggered to the front door. I felt oddly… drunk. When Emmet, Alice, and Edward saw me, their jaws dropped, closed, and then tightened in the span of thirty seconds.

I was wobbling like crazy. I fell forward but a pair of strong arms caught me. I looked up and expected to see Emmet, but it was Edward.

"Hi," I slurred.

My eyes started to flutter closed and I felt strong hands probing my head. I flinched a bit when he reached a tender spot.

"Bella!" a velvety voice I didn't recognize told me, "You can't sleep! Don't fall asleep!"

My eyes fluttered open and I saw Edward looking at me, panic clear in his eyes. I took a quick peek at Alice and Emmet. They seemed shocked that Edward spoke. Interesting.

"She might have a concussion," Edward told Alice.

Alice began to panic. Edward picked me up, bridal style. I heard Alice say the word "doctor" then "hospital" and "overnight". One coherent thought rushed through my head.

"Ethan," I said, "Don't leave him here. Ethan."

Edward tried to calm me and I found his voice oddly soothing.

"Emmet will bring him," Edward said, but I started to panic again.

"He… doesn't like strangers," I said weakly, I felt really tired, "Tell Emmet… tell Ethan 'Mommy needs to sing him his lullaby.' He'll go with Emmet, then. Tell Emmet to hurry. Please."

My head lolled to the side and Edward cursed under his breath. And that's all I remember.

* * *

**EPOV**

I'd just finished painfully watching Bella cut herself after she sang a beautiful but broken-hearted song when Alice danced into my room, the one with the bay window.

"I forgot my jacket at Bella's house," she told me.

I looked back to the bay window but noticed that Bella was gone. I shrugged and followed Alice to get Emmet, and then we were walking towards Bella's house.

Emmet and Alice talked about Bella and I was silent, as per usual. It didn't take long to get to the house.

Alice didn't ring the doorbell right away. But it was because we heard multiple _thump_s as if somebody was getting hit repeatedly. I suddenly felt very, very worried about Bella. Then, we heard a voice a lot like Bella's cry out in pain and a muted _crack_.

All three of us shared an apprehensive glance before Alice rang the doorbell. Charlie answered the door, with a nervous glance at a corner that was hidden from my view.

"Hi," Alice said, "I let my jacket over here. I was wondering if you could call Bella so she could get it, please?"

Charlie stuttered but then a sight that Alice, Emmet and I weren't ready to see staggered into view. Bella, bruised and battered, stumbling her way towards us. Her cheek was red, raw and bleeding. She was limping and her shirt was all messed up, so that I caught a glimpse of bruises on her lower stomach.

My jaw dropped, snapped closed, and then tightened. I was so… _angry_. I'd forgotten how the emotion of anger could become so strong. It was overpowering. I couldn't tear my eyes from the sight of her, staggering towards the door.

She began to lean forward, and, on a very strong impulse, I pushed past Emmet, Alice, and Charlie and caught her. She looked up into my eyes

"Hi," she said, slurring.

Her eyes started closing. I was extremely worried. I gently probed her scalp, on a hunch, and she flinched when I felt a bump. She could have a concussion. She can't sleep. That would be bad. I had to help her. I… I…

"Bella!" I said (Yes, I spoke for the first time in 6 years to save this girl) urgently, "You can't sleep! Don't fall asleep!"

My own voice startled me. It was way deeper than I remembered and smoother. Well, figures. I _had_ gone through puberty.

I was starting to panic, now, but Bella's eyes slowly opened. I saw her take a peek at Alice and Emmet, and I knew they were just as shocked as I was. I'd spoken. I'd spoken to save Bella. I turned to Alice.

"She might have a concussion," I told her, hysteria tingeing my words just a tiny bit.

"Oh, God," Alice breathed, "We have to take her Carlisle. He's a doctor so he'll know what to do, won't he? Or should we take her to the hospital and make her stay overnight?"

I picked Bella up bridal style.

"Ethan," she said weakly, "Don't leave him. Ethan."

I tried to comfort her by saying stuff like, "It's okay," and "It's all right."

"Emmet will bring him," I said.

"He… doesn't like strangers," she said weakly, "Tell Emmet…to tell Ethan 'Mommy needs to sing him his lullaby.' He'll go with Emmet, then. Tell Emmet to hurry. Please."

Mommy? I shook my head, though, to focus on helping Bella. Her head lolled to the side.

"Shit!" I said, under my breath, as I felt Bella suddenly go limp.

"Emmet," I snapped, "Get Ethan. Tell him what Bella told you to say. Hurry. I'm not going to leave with her until you have him so run."

Emmet ran up the stairs. He returned down the stairs with a sleeping Ethan in his arms. He ran down and then, all three of us were off. We ran to our house. I kicked open the door roughly.

"Carlisle!" I yelled.

He appeared at the top of the stairs, confused because he probably didn't recognize my voice.

"You've got to help her," I pleaded, "You have to."

"Bring her to my office," he said.

I ran up to his office, Alice and Emmet on my heels. I laid her body down on the sofa in Carlisle's office.

"Carlisle. It's bad, she might have a concussion," I said, urgently.

I was really starting to panic now.

"Gently wake her up, Edward, and calm down," Carlisle commanded.

I nodded and went to Bella's side. I gently shook her shoulders. Hey eyes opened slowly.

"You need to stay awake, Bella," I told her gently.

"You're talking," she said and then blushed.

I gave her a crooked smile and then a kiss on her forehead. I left Carlisle to examine Bella alone.

Downstairs, I was pacing like mad in the living room. Alice and Emmet watched me. It was late, but sooner than later, Rose and Jazz were over and sitting with their respective other.

All four of them watched as I paced silently. Ethan was asleep in Alice's lap. I was a little agitated so, when the four of them had been watching me for more than thirty minutes, I exploded.

"What?" I almost yelled at them.

Rose and Jazz seemed taken aback.

"He talks!" Emmet exclaimed, trying to joke around.

I rolled my eyes at him and continued to pace.

"Jeez, man," Jazz said, "Relax. She'll be okay."

"You didn't see her," I said angrily, "How would you know?"

"Are you that worried about her?" Rose asked.

"Yes," I snapped.

Alice and Rose shared a look. Then, Alice squealed, making Ethan stir. I glared at her and she settled down. I rolled my eyes and then went back to pacing.

"You like her," Alice stated, "A lot."

I scoffed and went back to pacing.

"Don't lie, Edward," Alice said, "The first time you've spoken in years and it's to Bella. I thought I saw emotion in your eyes earlier tonight, too, when you first saw her."

I shook my head and kept pacing.

"Edward," she said, "Can't you see? You-"

"Shut up," I growled to cut her off.

Ethan stirred. Everybody froze as he raised his head.

"Where's Mommy?" he asked sleepily.


	5. Befriended

**EPOV**

"Renee is at your house," I answered.

"Where's Bella?" the little boy demanded.

"She's resting," I told him.

"Can I sleep with her?" he asked.

I nodded. I walked up to him and carried him up to Carlisle's office. I guess Bella had gotten the OK from Carlisle to sleep, because she was knocked out on his couch. She was breath taking.

Her mouth was slightly open and she looked so much in peace. I couldn't help but flinch as I saw that her t-shirt had ridden up again, exposing bruises. My heart broke for her.

I quickly decided to move her somewhere else, to a bed, so that she was more comfortable.

"Emmet!" I called.

I heard him walk upstairs. His head peered into Carlisle's office.

"Move Bella to my room, on the bed," I said.

"Wow. He talks and fu-" Emmet tried to say, but I cut him off.

"There is a three year old in here, Emmet, and I'm not talking about you," I scolded, pointedly looking at the little boy in my arms.

"And I do not want to fu-… to… do anything to Bella. She'll just be more comfortable in a bed," I explained.

He rolled his eyes at me but didn't argue. He easily picked Bella up into his arms. He carried her down the hall to my room, and I followed with Ethan.

He laid Bella on my big bed and I laid Ethan on the bed, next to her. He immediately snuggled into her side, and though she was asleep, she hugged him to her.

I walked out of my room, closing the door behind me and walked downstairs to talk to Carlisle. I found him in the kitchen.

"Carlisle," I said.

He jumped at my voice but smiled when he saw it was me. My expression must have been something to see.

"Edward," he said, "You're worried about her."

I blushed and looked down, out of habit.

"Yeah," I answered.

"She's… okay," Carlisle said, "She cracked a rib and has multiple bruises all over her body."

I flinched and images of my past flitted through my mind. I pushed them down as far as I could.

"She'll recover?" I asked, hopefully.

"Yes," Carlisle answered, "She just needs a few weeks of rest."

I sighed in relief.

"How bad are the bruises?" I asked, dreading the answer.

"There are a lot of new and old ones. You can say that they've been doing this to her for a while. And there _are _the cuts on her arms. I examined them. One of them seems to be infected. I gave her meds for that. Then, I checked her head. She doesn't have a concussion, so I let her sleep. All in all, it could be worse," Carlisle answered.

"She seems like she's been through a lot. She seems so… mature for a sixteen year old," I said.

"You are, too, Edward," Carlisle said.

"Thank you," I said, "For everything."

"No, thank you," he answered, "You've taught me a very important lesson over these years."

"Yeah? What is that?"

"Hope is never lost."

* * *

**BPOV**

I don't remember falling asleep. I don't remember being moved to a bed and I don't remember dreaming. But, I do remember waking up to see a worried Edward watching over me and Ethan in my arms.

"Edward," I said sleepily.

"You need to rest more, Bella," he answered.

"Where are we?"

"My house."

"Why?"

"You're hurt."

"Who cares?"

"Idiot," he said, chuckling, "Alice, Emmet, Rose, Jasper, and me of course. Not to mention Ethan."

I smiled at that. I felt sleep tugging at my eyelids again.

"Edward," I said.

"Yes, Bella?"

"Thank you," I answered, before falling asleep again.

The next time I woke up, Ethan was still asleep next to me but Edward was gone. I carefully pulled Ethan into my arms without waking him up. I walked through the identical house, and down the stairs into the living room where I heard laughter.

I walked in silently and leaned against a wall. Alice, Emmet, Edward, Rosalie, and Jasper were sitting on the couches, watching TV and laughing. I smiled. I yawned and that's when everyone turned to me.

"Hey," I said when everything was silent.

"Bella," Edward breathed.

"Sleeping beauty is awake!" Emmet shouted.

I smiled at his enthusiasm. Alice lithely walked to me, grabbed my free hand and then pulled me onto one of the couches. I watched TV with the others, laughing when Emmet kept twisting random phrases around.

Esme Cullen walked in, saw me, and gasped in surprise. I took it the wrong way and quickly got up to leave.

"Where are you going, honey?" she asked.

"Um… I thought you wanted me to leave," I said.

"No, honey, no. I was just surprised that you were awake. Are you hungry?" she answered.

"Uh… I'm not that hungry, but I'm sure that this little boy will be when he wakes up," I replied, gesturing to the still asleep Ethan.

Esme tsked at me.

"You need food," she said sternly.

"Er... yes please?" I answered.

She laughed and walked back into the kitchen. I sat back down at the foot of the couch that Edward was sitting on. He was looking at me worriedly.

"What's up, Edward?" I asked.

"Are you okay?" he replied.

"Yeah. I'm not in much pain," I said.

"That's good," he said with a sigh of relief.

I smiled at him and he seemed to be stunned for a few moments before shaking his head and turning back to the TV, his cheeks a little flushed. I laughed. He was cute. Wait. Did I just think that? I shook my head to clear it and felt Ethan stir.

"Hey, baby," I said, when he opened his eyes.

He smiled big at me and rubbed at his eyes.

"Hungry?" I asked.

He nodded. Right on time, Esme walked into the living room and announced breakfast. I got up and let Ethan walk into the dining room. I watched as the others got up and walked into the other room.

I thought about how I'd have to go home soon and face the wrath of Renee and Jessica. I sighed in defeat, knowing I won't be able to stop them if and when they try to hit me. All I could do was try to protect my son.

"Bella? Are you okay?" Edward asked, hesitantly.

"Yeah," I replied, "Fine. Just a little tired."

"Need some help?"

"Uh…sure," I answered, "Thanks."

I'd thought Edward was going to lend me a hand to help me, instead of picking me up into his arms bridal style and carrying me to the dining room, instead. I blushed when everyone turned to me. Ethan ran up to Edward.

"Me too! Me too!" he squealed.

Edward and I laughed. Edward set me down and pulled out my chair for me so I could sit down, before he picked Ethan up and started playing airplane with him.

"Hey," I said warningly, "You two be careful."

"Yes, Bella," Edward and Ethan replied at the same time and then bursting into laughter.

I laughed and shook my head at them. They looked so happy together. I couldn't help but smile as Edward began to tickle Ethan. Ethan, of course, began to thrash and laugh like crazy.

I ate my breakfast, enjoying the way Edward got along with Ethan so well. At one point, Edward and Ethan had gotten their hands on the gigantic bowl of oatmeal, that no one had even touched. Ethan suddenly grabbed a handful and threw it at Edward's face.

"Ethan!" I said, standing up.

Edward turned around to look at me and I couldn't help but laugh. He had a bit of oatmeal in his bronze, disheveled hair but the rest was all on his left eye and cheek. I burst into laughter and so did Emmet, Rosalie, Jasper, and Alice. Esme and Carlisle were expressionless. Seeing Esme's and Carlisle's expressions, I immediately went over to Ethan.

"Don't do that, Ethan," I scolded.

I turned to apologize to Esme and Carlisle.

"I'm so sor-" I cut off because Edward looked up at me and the oatmeal on his cheek slid down onto his neck.

I looked back up and burst into laughter, forgetting that I was going to apologize to Esme and Carlisle for Ethan.

"So, Bella," Edward said threateningly, "You think this is funny?"

I was still laughing, but sensing the underlying tone of teasing menace, I put Ethan down and started to back away.

"No, you don't!" he said and lunged for me.

He managed to grab a hold of my waist and smash a bunch of oatmeal into my nose. He turned me towards the table and new laughter filled the air. I smiled and blushed furiously before I, too, grabbed a handful of oatmeal and turned around looking for Edward.

He wasn't behind me. I turned around to see Edward but couldn't react before he threw another glob of oatmeal at me. It hit me in the stomach. I gasped but then saw a flash of black. Suddenly, Alice was in front of me, spreading the oatmeal on my stomach in large circles so that it covered my entire shirt where my stomach was.

I stuck a handful of oatmeal in Alice's hair to get back at her. Everyone still at the table laughed. Alice grabbed two handfuls of oatmeal and threw one handful at Rosalie, which landed on her right eye, and Jasper, which landed right on his forehead. Emmet boomed because he hadn't gotten hit, but Edward threw a glob at him and it hit Emmet in the nose.

Everybody laughed, but I still needed to get back at Edward. So, I grabbed a handful of oatmeal and smashed it into Edward's face, spreading it with my palm. I took off running from Edward, grabbing the bowl of oatmeal. I circled the table, throwing handfuls at everyone, until Emmet caught me and pulled me into the air.

I squealed and screamed at him to put me down until I gave him the bowl of oatmeal. He then proceeded to throw a bunch at everyone else and myself especially. Edward caught up to me then, grabbed the oatmeal bowl from Emmet, and then dumped all of its contents onto me.

Everybody at the table laughed and applauded. I laughed too.

"Yeah, yeah, yeah," I said, taking a step forward, trying to walk around Edward.

I ended up stepping on a stray glob of oatmeal and falling onto Edward, bringing him down to the floor with me. Everyone at the table burst into laughter and I blushed furiously. Edward laughed too but then he met my gaze and we kept eye contact. He suddenly took his index finger and dragged it across my cheek, gathering the oatmeal on it. He stuck it in his mouth and grinned, while I blushed.

"Wow, Esme," he said, "I've never tasted oatmeal so delicious in my life."

I heard Esme laugh.

"Yeah and you've probably never had so much fun with it either."

"That sounds about right," Emmet said.

Everyone laughed. I realized that I was still on Edward. I stood up and stepped back, just to step on another puddle of oatmeal. I almost fell back but Edward caught me again. I looked around the table.

Alice, Rose, Emmet, Jasper, Edward, and I were an absolute mess. We all had oatmeal smeared on our faces, bodies, and hair. I looked to Carlisle and Esme. They, too, had oatmeal on their faces, but not nearly as much as the teenagers. I looked around for Ethan.

"Ethan?" I called.

He appeared from under the table and walked to me. He was the cleanest out of all of us. The only oatmeal he had on his body was the oatmeal on his hand from when he threw the gob at Edward.

"How is it that the boy who started this whole thing is the only one that isn't covered in oatmeal?" I asked.

Everyone laughed and then I looked around the dining room. Oatmeal was _everywhere._ I gasped.

"I'm so sorry," I said to Carlisle and Esme, "It shouldn't have gotten out of hand. It's my fault. I'll clean it up, immediately."

I took a step to go to the kitchen, but slipped on another puddle of oatmeal and fell onto my butt with an _oomph_. Everybody laughed and Edward helped me up. I looked at the shorts I was wearing. The back was now covered in oatmeal.

"Great," I said, "Now my butt is covered in oatmeal."

"Hey!" Rosalie complained, "Don't whine! At least the oatmeal didn't get into your bra!"

She stuck her hand down her shirt and when she brought her hand back out, she had a handful of oatmeal. I laughed and looked into my own tank top.

"Well, you're not the only one that has that problem," I said uncomfortably.

"Um… guys," Alice said, "I have the same problem."

I groaned as I tried to move around. My bra felt all squishy and lumpy. I shuddered.

"As I was saying," I said, "I'll clean up as soon as I can."

"Oh," Esme said, "Don't worry about it. We'll call someone else to do it, a professional. It's okay."

"Are you sure?" I asked.

"Oh, yes, yes, I'm sure," she answered, "Now, go to the backyard and hose off."

We walked reluctantly into the backyard. Edward had his hand on my elbow, to keep me from slipping on anymore random oatmeal globs. Once we were outside, I thanked Edward and everyone turned to each other. We all looked at each other in the sunlight. We burst into laughter.

Emmet started rolling on the ground and I was clutching my stomach. We all looked hilarious. I turned to the sun.

"Ugh," I complained, "Does anybody else feel like the oatmeal inside their shirt is drying?"

"I feel like that too!" Alice chirped.

I adjusted my shirt and bra. I sighed.

"How are we supposed to get this stuff out of our bras, girls?" I asked.

"We have to use our hands," Rosalie answered.

"I'll help!" Emmet shouted.

Rosalie rolled her eyes at him and hit him in the back of the head.

"No," she told him sternly.

I laughed and then I was suddenly being sprayed by water. I jumped and screamed, running away. I ended up hiding behind Emmet. I saw that Edward had turned the hose on and was now laughing at my expression.

"That wasn't funny!" I complained.

"I hate to break it to you, Bella, but it is to everyone else," Emmet said.

"Oh, shut up," I muttered.

Emmet then grabbed me by my arms and pulled me in front of him.

"Here you go, Edward," he said, "I'll hold her, you hose her down."

I started to squirm in Emmet's grasp. Then, I was pelted with water from the high-pressure hose. I laughed and fought against Emmet, until I was too tired to fight back and just let Edward hose me down.

When I was done, I stepped away from Emmet soaking wet. Everyone was laughing.

"What?" I asked.

"You look like a drowned cat!" Emmet blurted.

I stuck my tongue out at him, but that's when I heard Jessica's voice.

"Hey, hoe," I heard her scream from a distance.

I turned around to see her walking towards the seven of us, wearing only a very small bikini. I immediately hid Ethan behind me.

"What?" I asked coldly.

She walked up to me and slapped me full on the face.

"Mom wants you home," she said, "_Now._ She said that she wants you to stop fucking all the people here for money, because we all know that's what you're doing. She said that you need to get your ass home so she doesn't have to worry about you messing up our image in front of the media. So get your fucking fat ass home, fucking bitch whore."

I looked down at the grass.

"I'm coming," I whispered.

I pulled Ethan into my arms, though I was still dripping wet, and followed Jessica to the house, without looking back. Before I went inside, I turned around and waved to Alice, Jasper, Emmet, Rosalie, and Edward. Then, I turned around. I steeled myself for the worst and stepped into the foyer.


	6. Honest

**Veeeeery long chapter :]**

**Please review when you're done reading.**

**And please don't hate me for leaving it off where I left it off.**

**I'm thinking of immediately starting to write the next chapter for this story, just because I have a lot of fresh ideas for the next chapter.**

**What do you guys think?**

** -Jules  
**

* * *

As soon as I walked into the foyer, I saw a fuming Renee and a blank-faced Charlie. Jessica was sitting on the bottom step, looking annoyed and playing with her fingernails. Renee immediately started to cuss me out. I saw that she was practically shaking with anger.

All through her tirade, I felt my patience slipping away. I was so sick and tired of being told I wasn't good enough. I was angry that Renee had been telling me that I wasn't worth anything since I was ten. I was angry because Jessica, the girl who I should be able to talk to about everything, thought the same as Renee and slapped me on a daily basis.

I felt all of my pent up anger from all these years start to boil up to the surface. I wasn't even paying attention to what Renee was saying. I think Ethan sensed my mood because he put a calming hand on my cheek. For the first time since he was born, this didn't calm me.

I set my little boy down and pushed him towards the stairs. Jessica smirked evilly at him and stood up to follow him. That pushed me a little too far off the edge. I walked purposefully up to her, grabbed her wrist and yanked her away from the stairs.

"For. The. Last. Fucking. Time. Stay. Away. From. My. Son," I growled.

Everyone seemed to be surprised. I was too. I don't usually cuss and I don't usually get really pissed. I was almost always a very mellow and easy-going person. But I knew that I was finally done feeling like I'm not good enough.

"Don't talk to me like that!" Jessica whined and raised her hand to slap me.

Instead, I grabbed her wrist and pushed her away from me. Then, _I_ slapped _her _on the cheek. Oh, sweet Jesus, how long had I been waiting to do that? I didn't do it again, though. I wasn't a violent person, even if the person deserved what was coming to them.

Everybody was silent and shocked. I took a deep breath and rubbed my aching temples.

"How dare you!" Jessica finally screeched.

"Me?" I exploded, "I slapped you once and only because you were whining because I told you to stay away from Ethan. I warned you before and you didn't heed it. But, how many times have you hit me in my lifetime? Hmm? More than you can count, right?"

"Shut up, you little ungrateful bitch," Renee said.

"No," I said angrily, "Stop calling me a bitch, a whore, a hoe, and all those other nasty things you can't seem to stop calling me. I am none of those things and I'm tired of you trying to convince me otherwise."

"But, Bella," Renee said, fake-sweetly, "You are one and all of those things. You got pregnant and had a son at fourteen."

"I told you I'd been raped!" I yelled.

Renee, Charlie, and Jessica flinched at that.

"I told you," I said quietly, "At thirteen years old, I told that I'd been raped. You didn't believe me. And then weeks later, when I found out I was pregnant with Ethan, what did all of you do? You cussed me out and beat me for a full 24 hours straight. You even had Jessica sit on my stomach, to try to kill him. You kept me locked inside the house, telling me not to even look out the window because of the media. I wasn't outside of our house for a full, at least, eight months. You didn't even want me out when my stomach was still flat. Throughout my pregnancy, you all didn't support me the way every mother should be supported. You didn't support me how a thirteen-year-old mother was supposed to be supported. You treated me like I had the black plague, and when I was in labor, you guys did the same thing you always do. You screamed at me, when I was in pain and when I was in my most vulnerable state. Could you even begin to imagine how much that sucked?"

All was quiet. Renee, Jessica, and Charlie were all very still. I had to study them closely to make sure they were breathing. I heaved a big sigh and shook my head at them.

"I thought so," I whispered, shaking my head.

I slowly walked up the stairs to my room, leaving my stunned family in the foyer. I walked to my room and slammed the door shut. I slid to the floor with my back against the wall. I took a deep breath and let it gust out in a sigh. I opened my eyes to see that Ethan wasn't in the room.

My maternal instincts kicking in, I started to panic. I walked swiftly down the small staircase that lead to the playroom. I found Ethan there, playing with his toys.

"Hey, baby," I said.

He looked up at me with a big smile on his face.

"Are you all right, Mommy?" he asked.

"Yeah," I answered, "I'm perfectly fine."

I kissed him on the forehead and watched him play with his toys. The day passed pretty quickly. Ethan and I just hung around. Surprisingly, we didn't run into Charlie, Jessica, or Renee, at all.

We both fell asleep early that night and didn't wake up until about ten the next morning. That morning I realized that I'd have to go to school tomorrow. I internally groaned as I thought of all the stupid paparazzi that were going to maul me and the stupid school gossip that I was going to be a part of tomorrow.

I put my head down on the kitchen counter. I hadn't seen Renee, Charlie, or Jessica yet, since I ranted to them about my experience all those years ago. I decided that I wanted to hang out with the Cullens today.

"Do you want to see Edward and Emmet, today?" I asked Ethan.

He nodded eagerly and I laughed. After we ate breakfast, we went to our room and got changed. I dressed Ethan in a shirt that said "Don't hate the player, hate the game," and jeans. I wore a band t-shirt and skinny jeans. I pulled on converse and put Ethan's sneakers on him.

Then, we left the house and made our way towards the Cullens' place. We rang the doorbell and Emmet answered. He pulled me into a tight bear hug. I was literally feeling dizzy from the air loss of being squeezed so tight. When he put me down, I stumbled and put a hand to the door to steady myself. I put a hand to my chest and breathed deep.

"I couldn't breathe!" I complained.

Emmet guffawed and pulled Ethan up and put him on his shoulders. They walked into the house, leaving me still trying to catch my breath at the front door. I shook my head at them. Edward appeared in the doorway, then. He chuckled at my position.

"Let me guess," he said, "Emmet?"

"Who else hugs so hard you feel like your ribs are going to crack?" I answered teasingly.

"No one but Emmet," Edward answered, shaking his head.

"He's definitely one of a kind," I agreed.

"Need help?" Edward asked.

"You're not going to carry me again, are you?"

"Why? Do you want to be carried?"

"In your dreams, Edward," I teased.

He cocked an eyebrow at me and I rolled my eyes at him. I walked into the house. Everyone was in the living room. Rosalie was playing with Ethan in her lap. Ethan was laughing uncontrollably as she bounced him up and down on her leg.

"Rosie," Emmet said, "Why don't you do _that_ to _me_ later?"

He waggled his eyebrows at her. Seeing that Rosalie's hands were full, I walked up to Emmet and hit him in the back of the head.

"Shut up, Emmet," I said.

"Ow!" Emmet complained, "Not you too, Bella!"

We all laughed and Rosalie turned to me.

"Thanks for doing that for me, Bella," she said.

"No problem, Rosalie," I answered.

"Call me Rose."

"Okay, Rose," I said and smiled at her.

She returned the smile. Then, I noticed that it was a little too quiet. I looked around the living room. I saw Jasper, Emmet, Rose, Edward, and Ethan, but no Alice.

"Where's the pix?" I asked.

"The pix?" Jasper asked, confused.

"Yeah, you know, pix as in pixie as in Alice," I elaborated.

"Oh," Jasper said and shrugged.

"How can you not know?" I asked, laughing, "She's your girlfriend."

Jasper snorted. "Yeah, " he said, "But you try keeping an eye on a whirlwind of hyperactive energy 24/7."

This elicited laughs from everyone. And suddenly, Alice was next to me, tugging on my hand.

"What the hell? Alice? What are you doing?" I asked, confused.

"We're going to play Bella Bar-" she answered but I cut her off.

"If you say Bella Barbie, I am going to scream," I warned.

"Bella Barbie," Alice finished.

I let out a very high-pitched and loud scream.

"Jesus, Bella!" Emmet cursed.

"Damn, girl," Rose commented.

"Ouch," Jasper said, rubbing his ears.

"I didn't expect that," Edward said, a crooked grin on his face.

"THAT STILL DOESN'T CHANGE ANYTHING!" Alice shouted, "WE'RE STILL PLAYING BELLA BARBIE!"

"Why are you yelling?" I asked.

"WHAT?!" she yelled.

"WHY ARE YOU YELLING?" I shouted.

"BECAUSE I CAN'T HEAR. YOU SCREAMED IN MY EAR!"

I burst into laughter. It was just too funny. I let her drag me to her room. She pushed me into her walk-in closet. Rose followed behind us.

"So," Alice said, at a normal volume again, "What we're going to do today is model for the boys."

"I can't do that," I said.

Alice held up her hand to shut me up.

"Don't even try to argue with me. My heart and mind is set on this. We are going to do this and Bella, you will have fun," she said sternly.

"Yes, m'am," I answered, giggling.

Then, Alice set to work on me. First, she did my hair and make up. I closed my eyes for that. I felt her pull and tug at my cheeks, hair, eyes and lips. It was actually pretty painful but I had to laugh whenever Alice groaned in frustration when something on my head didn't want to cooperate with her.

They told me to keep my eyes closed when they were done. I did as I was told. I felt and heard the sound of rushing fabric. I felt a dress pulled on me. Rose and Alice zipped it up.

"Okay," Alice said, "Now, Bella, don't open your eyes. Rose and I are going to put our own dresses on. When we tell you to, you can open your eyes, okay?"

"Uh… do I have a choice?" I asked.

"Nope," Rose answered, popping the "p".

"Then, alright," I replied, "Let's do this."

I heard more rushing of fabric and murmurs. Rose and Alice were probably helping each other into their dresses. Then, I felt two presences on either side of me.

"Ready, ladies?" Alice asked.

"Of course," Rose answered.

"As ready as I'll ever be," I replied sarcastically.

"Open your eyes," she commanded.

I opened my eyes and my jaw dropped. All three of us were in green dresses, but the designs were completely different. Rose was in a knee-length light green dress, that had a bow that tied right below her chest. She was wearing bright yellow pumps and her hair cascaded down her back in light curls. She was as striking as ever.

Alice was wearing also wearing a knee-length dress but it was emerald green and didn't have a bow. It had a plunging neckline, though. I, on the other hand, was wearing a dark green dress that ended just below my butt. It was held up by my neck, like a halter-top, and had a bow that tied below my chest. It showed a _lot_ of cleavage and a _lot_ of my legs.

I then studied my face. My eyes were lined heavily and my eyelashes were curled and thickened with mascara. I was wearing a smoky eye shadow. My cheeks were pink with blush and my lips were ruby red and glossy. My hair fell straight and ended halfway to my back.

"Whoa," I breathed.

I realized that I didn't compare to Alice or Rose, but I still looked hot.

"We did good, Rose," Alice squealed and gave her a high five.

I laughed. Rose handed me a pair of black pumps and I eyed them carefully. Alice cocked an eyebrow at me, daring me not to put the shoes on. I sighed and put them on. They made my legs looks longer and leaner.

"We're ready," Alice squealed, clapping her hands.

She and Rose dragged me to the top of the stairs.

"Oh, boys," Rose called.

"What?" Emmet yelled back.

"We're ready to model for you," Alice answered sweetly.

"Is that true, Bella?" Edward asked.

I blushed furiously.

"They're making me do it," I grumbled, but everybody heard me.

Emmet guffawed but I heard Jasper and Edward chuckle.

"Bella!" I heard Ethan yell, "I want to see you!"

I chuckled but rolled my eyes. I couldn't say no to him. I sighed.

"Coming," I replied unenthusiastically.

Alice walked down first. I heard Jasper take in a deep breath. Rose and I chuckled. Then, it was Rose's turn. Emmet whistled and whooped like a mad man. Once Rose finished walking down the stairs, I heard a _smack _and Emmet complain. I chuckled.

"Come on, Bella," Alice said, "It's your turn. Get your butt down here."

"I'm coming, I'm coming," I said, rolling my eyes.

Taking a deep breath and looking at the floor, I walked carefully down the stairs. Everyone's eyes were on me. I felt a blush creep up my neck. Once safely off the stairs, I looked up.

"Wow, Bella," Ethan said, "You're hot!"

When Ethan said my name, I smiled, but when he finished his second sentence it fell.

"Okay," I said, putting my hands on my hips, "Which one of you boys taught him a new vocabulary word?"

Emmet grinned sheepishly and raised his hand. Rose slapped him on the back of the head.

"Thanks," I said to her.

"No problem," she said, giving me a wink.

"So, boys," Alice said, "What do you think of our new and improved Bella?"

"Hot," Emmet said.

I rolled my eyes at him.

"Nice," Jasper said,

"Beautiful," a velvet voice whispered.

I looked up, startled, into Edward's intense green gaze. I blushed like mad.

"Thanks," I murmured.

"Okay, girls," Alice announced, "Next round."

I sighed. The three teenage boys laughed. I stuck my tongue out at them but when Alice and Rose started pulling me up the stairs, I mouthed, "Help me! HELP ME!" The boys only laughed in response.

Alice then changed us into purple dresses and we modeled them for the boys again. This went on for a few more hours, but with different colored dresses.

Finally, Alice announced that the blue dresses were the last ones we were going to model. We stopped in front of the mirror again. Rose and Alice, once again, looked stunning.

Alice was wearing a blue-green dress that came up to her knees. It had spaghetti straps and had jewels around the chest area. Rose was wearing a robin-egg blue dress that fell all the way to the floor. It had a slit, though, that ended halfway up her thigh.

I was wearing a dark blue spaghetti strap dress that reached my ankles. It was pretty low cut and tight, which showed off my curves. I was wearing black pumps.

It had taken Alice, Rose, and me longer to change this time because our last dresses were really fancy. We also had to re-do our makeup. Plus, Rose insisted on putting my hair into a bun. But, after about a half hour, we were finally ready.

We took our places at the top of the stairs.

"We're ready for the finale!" Alice yelled.

We heard cheers from the boys. Alice walked down slowly. I heard someone's breath catch. Probably Jasper. Then, Rose walked down at the same pace as Alice. I heard Emmet sigh and I smirked.

Then, I walked slowly down the stairs. I heard a sharp intake of breath. Once again, I met Edward's smoldering gaze. He stood up suddenly and walked over to me. He pulled the pins out of my hair, making it fall heavily to my shoulders.

"Much better," he said roughly.

I blushed.

"You look amazing," Edward said.

"Thanks," I said, blushing even deeper.

"Listen, Bella," he said.

"Yes?" I asked, looking up at him.

Suddenly, he kissed me. His lips were passionate and urgent on mine. I kissed back, loving how our lips fit together perfectly. His hands came up to my head to run through my hair.

"I might be falling for you," he admitted breathlessly when we pulled away to breathe.

Tears sprang to my eyes. If he only knew… he wouldn't think he was falling for me. I looked down at the floor blankly. I was quiet. I didn't know what to say. My mind was telling me that I shouldn't let him like me but my heart was telling me differently.

There was no doubt in my mind that I liked Edward, too. It's just that I didn't know how _he_ could love someone like _me_, a girl who became a mother at 13.

"I'd understand if you didn't return my feelings…" Edward said, trailing off.

"It's not that," I said softly, "It's just that… You wouldn't think that you liked me if you knew everything about me."

"Nobody's perfect, Bella," he said.

"Yeah, I know, but I'm especially not perfect," I replied.

"Everyone is a little broken," he said softly.

I saw a flash of pain in his eyes and I had a strong urge to wrap my arms around him and comfort him.

"You don't understand," I said sadly.

He looked up and I'm sure my own pain reflected in my eyes.

"You can trust me," he answered.

I took a deep breath. I really wanted to tell him and the others. They apparently liked me for me, though I didn't know why, so maybe telling them about Ethan wouldn't change anything. But, then again, if I did tell them, there was also a huge possibility that I'd be shunned.

Then, I'd be all alone again. Edward must have seen my internal debate reflected on my face because he gave me a crooked smile. He smoothed the wrinkle between my eyebrows with his index finger. He kissed my forehead.

"You can tell me anything," he said.

He sounded so sincere that I decided to tell him.

"E-E-Ethan is… w-w-well… he's actually my… m-my… my s-" I suddenly broke off, noticing that I couldn't see my son.

"Wait," I said, "Where's Ethan?"

"Renee took him home," Emmet answered from the couch.

My breath caught. Renee never does things like that. She hated Ethan, unless my speech to her the other night convinced her that Ethan wasn't my fault. Maybe she wanted to get to know him better…

Good lord, who was I kidding?

"How long has Ethan been gone?" I asked, starting to panic.

"Since just after you guys had gone up to change into your blue dresses," Edward asked, looking concerned.

I was completely frozen. I started to hyperventilate. A half hour. Thirty minutes. How much damage could Renee and Jessica inflict on Ethan in thirty minutes? Not a lot, right? Wrong. I was just trying to convince myself that Ethan was all right.

"No!" I shouted suddenly, making everyone jump.

"What's wrong?" Jasper asked.

"Shit, shit, shit!" I cursed.

"_What is wrong_?" Edward demanded.

"Ethan! Dammit!" I yelled.

I hiked up my dress to my knees and ran out the Cullen's front door. I ran to my house, in heels mind you, and burst into the foyer. What I saw shattered my heart with the force of a thousand tons.

Renee was standing over an unconscious Ethan, cussing at him. I must have made a noise because then everyone looked to me. Renee gave me an evil smile before slapping Ethan.

I didn't even think. I ran over to them and pushed Renee off of Ethan. Her butt met the floor with a _thud._

"How dare you!" she thundered, standing back up again.

She pushed me to the floor, this time around. She kicked me in the chest with the heel of her foot and I heard a very loud and sick snapping sound. I felt the breath go out of me. She kept punching me in the stomach. Then, she slapped both of my cheeks, hard, before starting to punch me in the face.

I just lay there, taking all of her punches, slaps, and kicks. I needed to make sure that I was hurt more than Ethan, and not for the attention, but for, I guess you can call it, redemption, almost. It was all my fault that my baby was now unconscious.

Renee hit me again but, making a decision, I jumped up and tried to run to Ethan. Renee grabbed my wrists from behind me. She may be in her forties, but she was _strong._ I tried to pull away from her, but my arms were already twisting in their sockets. I pulled harder and heard two distinct _pop_s and pain shot from my shoulders all the way to my fingertips, as I yanked myself away from Renee.

I ran to Ethan, ignoring the pain in my arms and chest. I picked him up, biting back a yelp at them pain. I secured him in my hold before running painfully back to the Cullens. I needed help. Now. _Ethan, _I thought, looking down at his bruised face, _I'm so sorry_.

"I'm so very sorry, baby, so very sorry," I sobbed out loud.

I quickly made it to the Cullen household, but my arms and rib cage were still screaming in pain and I couldn't breathe properly. I knocked urgently on the door. Edward opened it, looking worried. His eyes widened at Ethan's and my present state of health. That's when I broke down. I felt my knees hit the floor.

"Please," I whispered, "Help him. Help Ethan. Help… my son."

And just like that, the truth was out there. But I couldn't bring myself to regret it just now. I'd regret it later, if I'd have to regret it at all. But, judging by the blank look on Edward's face, I _would_ regret it later.


	7. Explained

**So... the truth is out. :]**

**This chapter is one of the shorter ones but it's wear Bella explains so yeah.**

**Keep reviewing.**

**Love you guys!**

** -Jules  
**

* * *

"Your son?" Edward asked, no emotion coloring his voice.

"Yes," I sobbed.

"Ethan is your son and you didn't tell me?!" Edward yelled loudly.

"Yes," I sobbed again.

Hearing what Edward yelled, Alice, Rose, Jasper, and Emmet came to the front door to see what was going on. They saw Ethan bruised and me sobbing on my knees. They gasped and took a step forward.

"Ethan is her son," Edward spit at them.

They gasped and looked at me questioningly. I nodded. Their expressions changed in a heartbeat. Rose looked at me in disgust. Jasper was looking at me with his eyebrows raised. Alice and Emmet looked hurt and shocked.

"Help him," I sobbed, "_Please!_"

Alice, still looking hurt and staring at me, put a hand on Edward's shoulder.

"We need to get him to the hospital," she said.

Edward looked at me, fury in his eyes. This made me sob harder. I tried to breathe in but found I couldn't do it, so I just took shallow breaths. I tried to stand with Ethan in my arms, but the pain was too excruciating. Emmet took Ethan from my hands. Rose scoffed, rolled her eyes, shook her head, and walked past me to their cars. Jasper looked at me, disgust hinting at the corners of his eyes. Alice gently helped me up.

When she helped me up, she still looked at me with a hurt expression. I also noticed that she wouldn't meet my eyes. She led me to a silver Volvo where everyone was piling in.

"We're driving Ethan to the hospital," Alice said.

"Thank you," I sobbed.

I tried to breathe again but pain stabbed my chest. I put a hand to my chest to stifle it and felt more pain shoot up my arm. I tried to shake the pain off by shaking my head.

Alice pushed me gently into the car, putting pressure on one of my arms. I took a sharp breath but then my chest hurt so I put a hand to my chest again, just to feel the pain shoot up my arm again.

"Bella," Alice asked, "Are you okay?"

Everyone in the car was looking at me. Edward, Rose, Jasper, and Emmet. I nodded. I saw that Ethan was in Emmet's arms in the backseat. I slid in next to him. Alice slid in next to me and Rose slid in next to her.

"Why are we helping her anyway?" Rose asked angrily once we were on the street.

"We're not helping her. We're helping Ethan," Edward answered, furious.

This made me want to cry but I bit back the tears. I had to be strong in case Ethan woke up. I stroked Ethan's forehead lovingly, lightly tracing his bruises. That's when I couldn't take the tense silence in the car anymore. But luckily, I didn't have to say anything. Alice did.

"Rose," Alice slapped, "Edward. You two stop that right now. You didn't even give Bella a god damn chance to explain. All of us are pretty miffed with her for not telling us but she probably just had a bunch of reasons why she couldn't tell us."

"Oh, yeah, Alice," Edward answered sarcastically, "Give her a chance to make up lies and excuses."

I took a ragged shallow breath. Before Alice could retort, I spoke loudly, cutting everyone off.

"I started getting beaten and cussed out when I was eight and I had just taken it. I never talked back, never hit back, and I never said anything to the press that watched all of us so carefully," I said, "When I was thirteen, I had just gotten sick of it. I tried to run away. I packed a backpack and left the house. No one had even noticed that I'd gone.

"I didn't know where to go. I just walked, taking random streets and turning whenever I thought I had to. I went for about three hours, going unnoticed. But then, I had to pass a bar. I'd looked for other streets I could take instead of walking past the bar but the only other intersection was past the bar.

"I'd thought '_What could happen to me? It cant be that bad_.' So, I walked past the bar. What I didn't notice was that there was an alley right next to the bar. When I finally did notice, it was too late. Somebody had grabbed me from behind and pinned me to the alley wall."

I closed my eyes, remembering what had happened. I heard a sharp intake of breath and looked over to see a wide-eyed Rose.

"He… he… he raped me," I continued, my voice breaking. I regained my composure and went on, "When he'd left, I wasn't so hurt that I couldn't get up and walk, so I did. I walked back home. When I got back, I told Renee, Charlie, and Jessica. They hadn't even realized I was gone. Anyway, I told them and they didn't believe me. They accused me of making up stories to get attention. They sent me to bed without food that night.

"A few weeks later, I found out I was pregnant with Ethan. I told Charlie, Renee, and Jessica, hoping they'd help me, but they had Jessica sit on my stomach for a full twelve hours. Charlie called a doctor and he checked on me. The baby had survived when Jessica had sat on my stomach. Renee tried to convince me to have an abortion but I wouldn't have any of it.

"I told them I was going to keep the baby and I actually managed to convince Renee to say he was her son. During my pregnancy, Renee had me stay in the house and I did."

I had to stop my story because we'd arrived at the hospital. Emmet opened his door and rushed inside. I followed after him worriedly. We checked Ethan in and made sure Carlisle was the one to check up on him. Edward, Rose, Jasper, Emmet, Alice, and I waited in the waiting room. I paced while continuing my story.

"My pregnancy didn't go without complications. I'd had a lot of scares. I believe I had almost lost him twice, at least four early false labors, and he'd almost drowned in his own placenta once. It killed me when something like that happened. I didn't want to lose him, but we both pulled out of every scare.

"When I'd gone into labor, I'd already had midwives at the house and a doctor on speed dial just in case. His birth was the most painful moment in my life, but also the most precious. I had no doubt that I'd love my son. In fact, I'd already loved him before I gave birth to him. He'd given me a reason to get up in the mornings.

"Charlie, Renee and Jessica weren't exactly a help to me when I was in labor. They were yelling at me, calling me hideous names, but I ignored them and focused on bringing my baby into the world. Once Ethan was born, my family didn't waste time in hating him.

"I mean, they'd left the room right after I'd given birth and the days of my recovering were calm. After that, though, it was like hell broke loose. I was always carrying Ethan and feeding him and Charlie, Renee, and Jessica hated him by association with me. They did nothing to try and help me take care of Ethan.

"But, I'd seen that coming. A bunch of our clients, upon hearing that 'Renee' was expecting, sent baby stuff. I was covered in that area for a long time. Ethan's first year was hard for me, though. I always took care of him and I didn't regret it then, I don't regret it now, and I will never bring myself to regret it. I'd calm him down when he would cry in the middle of the night. I'd tuck him in. I'd love him.

"He was my angel. He saved me and he still saves me, though he doesn't know it. But Renee's, Jessica's and Charlie's hate never went away. At home, Ethan was always subject to glares and muttered cursings. Renee had even raised her hand at him a few times when slapping me.

"That changed one night when I told them all to stay away from him or I'd tell the media. Their perfect little family image would be broken. They backed off after that. It didn't stop the glares though. As I said, they hated him by association with me.

"I'd thought that the threat would keep them away from Ethan for a long time. But apparently it didn't," my voice broke now, "He's in the god damned hospital because I was too busy having fun to pay attention to him."

I stopped talking. I sat on the floor. I was still breathing shallowly.

"You could have told us," Rose said softly.

I scoffed and my chest ached.

"And said what? 'Oh, and yeah guys, Ethan really isn't my brother. He's my son and I had him at the age of thirteen.' How well do you think that would have gone?"

"You could have explained," Emmet said.

"I wasn't even supposed to tell you right now. Charlie, Renee, and Jessica are insane about their image in front of the world," I answered.

"You could have trusted us," Jasper said.

"I just met you a few days ago!" I shouted, "I'm doubting a little but that I could trust you all right now! I—whoa."

I had suddenly gotten dizzy after I'd shouted. I was still breathing hard and shallow. My arms still hurt like hell too.

"Bella," Edward finally said, "Were you hit too?"

"I'm fine," I answered, shrugging. My arms screamed their protests.

Everyone must have noticed my wince and my breathing.

"Take a deep breath," Edward commanded.

I tried to but to no avail. It hurt too much. Edward suddenly got up, walked to my and yanked my shirt up to reveal my bruising ribs.

"Did you crack a rib?" he asked.

"Possibly, but I'm fine," I answered, "I really need to focus on Ethan."

Carlisle walked in and I got up to run to him. Just my luck, I tripped and he caught me by my wrist. I unintentionally yelped at the pain that shot up through my arm. Carlisle looked curious. He began probing my arm. Then, he reach my shoulder and tsked. He looked at my other arm.

"Both of them, eh?" he asked.

"Yeah," I answered sheepishly.

"Both of them what, Dad?" Emmet asked.

"Her arms. Dislocated," Carlisle answered, "I'll have to pop them back in now."

"No!" I shouted. Everyone looked at my curiously. "I need to be sure that Ethan is alright."

"Ah, yes, Ethan," Carlisle said, "He's fine. None of his ribs cracked. He doesn't have a concussion. Nothing is broken but everything is bruised."

Tears sprang to my eyes at this.

"Is he asleep?" I asked.

"Yes, and he's not in pain. I gave him a small shot to make the pain go away and to help him sleep."

"Thank you," I whispered.

He seemed to notice that I was breathing shallowly too and my shirt must still have been showing my stomach, because he gasped and looked at my ribs. He poked them gently.

"Jesus!" I shouted.

This made me breathe even shallower and the pain in my chest grow. The world spun slightly and I swayed. Carlisle caught me, looking at me worriedly.

"She punctured a lung," he said to himself.

Then, he started barking orders to the nurses. Rose, Jasper, Emmet, Alice, and Edward watched, not able to do anything. I smiled reassuringly at them but it turned to a grimace as Carlisle jostled me, making the pain flare.

Then, I felt my consciousness begin to ebb away from me. I heard Carlisle's voice turn frantic as I closed my eyes. I vaguely registered being laid on a bed and then moving. Somebody held my hand. I heard a velvet voice call my name over and over but I couldn't bring my body to respond.

His voice was just background noise, though. I was aware that I was going to pass out soon but I was too tired to fight it. I began to shut everything out, but I registered one last thing.

I registered that a velvet voice said, "Bella, I love you."


	8. AN

**So, quick AN.**

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	9. Loved

**Shorter chapter this time. :]**

**Hope you like.**

**Review, pleeeaaasseee!**

**I'm thinking of ending this one soon. :/**

**But, it seems like it should end soon.**

**It's a short fanfic but it's moving pretty quickly, you know?**

**Anyways, I love you guys!**

**- Jules  
**

* * *

I woke up slowly, aware of an annoying beeping. I recognized the sound immediately. A heart monitor. I internally groaned. I was in the hospital, probably. I also became aware that I was holding someone in my arms, but also, someone was holding me in their arms. This made my eyes pop open.

I opened my eyes and saw that Ethan was curled into my side. I smiled and ran my hand through his hair. I twisted a little, painfully, to see that Edward had fallen asleep with me in his arms. I also saw that I was not at the hospital.

I recognized the room as Edward's at the Cullen's. I looked down at myself and saw that I was in a tank top and shorts that could be classified as underwear. I wiggled a little, getting a little restless.

Edward didn't let go though, in fact, he tightened his grip on me. Thankfully, Alice walked in with Rose right behind her. They saw me trying to wiggle out of Edward's arms. Alice giggled, but Rose just looked at me apologetically.

"Bella," Rose said, "I'm so sor-"

I cut her off, saying, "Don't be. It's my fault. I guess I should have told you guys. It's just… it's scary, you know? I was, and still am, so worried about my baby boy."

I sighed. Rose smiled weakly at me and I beamed at her. She returned the smile after a few seconds. Alice was still giggling at me predicament.

"Stuck?" she said.

"Yep," I answered, "Between my two favorite boys."

I chuckled but then gasped, putting a hand over my mouth, realizing what I'd just said. Alice's eyes widened and then she squealed. Rose just laughed really loud. Edward stirred.

"Rose," he said sleeiply, "Alice. Go away. Bella is trying to sleep. Can't you see she's still asleep?"

Alice and Rose burst into laughter and I chuckled with them. Edward's eyes shot open and he looked at me.

"You're awake!" he shouted.

He squeezed me against him, putting pressure on a tender spot. I whimpered from the pain. Edward quickly let go.

"Sorry," he said.

"It's okay," I answered, "You just hit a spot that hurts."

"Sorry," he said again.

"It's fine," I replied again, emphasizing "fine."

He gave me a crooked smile and my heart beat unevenly. This was displayed for everyone in the room because of that damn heart monitor. Alice and Rose giggle while I blushed and looked away.

"So," I said, averting the subject from my embarrassing display, "What happened?"

"One of your ribs had snapped and punctured your lung. It was a really bad puncture, too. Carlisle had to perform surgery. He was able to fix the problem, but you have to be careful because of the stitches," Alice replied.

I grimaced and asked, "Will I have a scar?"

"Luckily," Rose said, "You won't. You just need to keep putting this gel on it and it'll go away."

"And Ethan?" I asked urgently.

Alice smiled and answered, "He's absolutely fine. He was worried as hell, though."

I breathed a sigh of relief and stroked my baby's head.

"You worry about him too much," Rose said.

I laughed and answered, "I guess I do, but, I mean, Ethan was and is my world to me. He was the only thing that kept me from, I don't know, jumping out a window. He helped me stay strong and he still does. But, he's not the only one anymore. That is, unless you, Alice, Emmet, Jasper, and Edward don't want to be friends with me anymore. I'd totally understand. I was pretty stu-"

Edward cut off my rant. He put a finger to my lips and kissed my forehead.

"We're all still your friends, Bella," he said, "We all love you. _I_ love you."

I looked at him in alarm.

"You… love… me…?" I asked slowly.

"Yes, Bella," he said, his eyes smoldering, "I love you."

"Even though I'm already a mother? Even though I almost kill myself everyday because I trip? Even though I lied to you? Even though I'm so flawed? Even though I'm plain? Even though-"

He cut me off with a chuckle.

"Yes," he answered, "I love you. I love all your flaws. I love you for you. Bella, you're the first one to make me _feel_ anything since I was ten. I'd always been silent and unfeeling, until I met you. And though I've only known you for about two weeks, and yes you've been asleep for about a week and a half, I do love you, with all my heart."

I felt tears spring to my eyes. He looked alarmed but I gave him a small smile to assure him that I was alright.

"I think I love you too, Edward Cullen," I said, "You're sweet, caring and considerate and you don't mind my flaws."

"So, you don't mind my flaws either?" he asked.

"What do you mean by flaws?" I answered.

"Usually, I have horrible nightmares of what happened when I was ten. I get flashbacks at random times. I'm scared of the dark and I really do not like my real father who is in jail right now," he said.

"Those aren't really flaws but yes," I said, "I love you still."

He wrapped his arms around me and squeezed me to his chest. Then he laughed and got out of the bed. He laughed again at my expression and helped me get to my feet. He pulled me into his arms, bridal style, but I pointed at Ethan. Edward let me down so that I could carry Ethan. Then, Edward picked both Ethan and me up.

"Wait!" I said.

"What is it?" he answered.

"Aren't we too heavy for you?" I asked, bewildered.

"No," Edward said, "I can carry both of you easily."

With that said, he carried me downstairs and into the kitchen where everyone was already eating breakfast. Everyone said hi and asked me if I was better. Carlisle asked me more extensive questions and It old him the truth.

I felt fine. Actually, I felt better than that. I felt whole. I felt happy. I finally found somewhere my son and I actually belonged.

* * *

**EPOV**

I watched my strong Bella eat breakfast and talk with my family. She looked amazing. While she was asleep, for a full week, worrying me to death, all her bruises had healed and the bags under her eyes and completely disappeared.

Her skin was practically glowing. She looked so healthy, happy, and beautiful that it made my heart want to burst. I watched her happily, unthinkingly putting food into my mouth.

When she was done eating, I think she finally noticed me staring because she turned to me and blushed. She smiled big at me and I was stunned for a moment. I smiled back and she blushed harder.

She looked at the leftover pancakes on her plate. I swear I _saw_ an idea pop into her head. She looked up at me and grinned mischievously. I was confused, but then she picked up a piece of leftover pancake between her index finger and her thumb and then flicked it at me.

It landed in my hair. She laughed uncontrollably. I stood up and walked to her side of the table. I lifted her up by her arms. I threw her over my shoulder and brought her outside. I left her on the lawn before quickly ducking back inside to grab a plate of syrup-drowned pancakes.

I ran back outside and threw the whole plate on her. She gasped and turned to me. Her mouth made a very large _O_. I couldn't help but laugh at her expression. She glared and the unexpectedly lunged at me. She ended up tackling me to the ground but went down with me, too.

The both of us were laughing really hard. We were both clutching our sides but we managed to hold onto each other while we were doing so. She looked up at me, and the syrup on her head dripped from her hair to her lips. I smiled.

I kissed her ever so gently on the lips. She kissed back shyly. I kissed her a little harder than before and she complied. She broke away from me.

"I love you," I told her.

"I love you too," she replied.

"Aw, how cute," a deep unrecognizable voice said from a few feet away from us.

Both Bella and I looked up in alarm at the voice. A man stood just six feet away from us. He was wearing old, faded jeans and an un-tucked flannel shirt. He had short, bronze hair and emerald green eyes…

I recognized him almost immediately. My smile fell, as did my mood. I stood up and grabbed Bella by her waist to pull her close to me. I stepped slightly in front of her and angled her so that I was covering most of her with my body.

"Good going, son," the man said, "I see you've found a woman. She's hot. You must be happy."

I said nothing in response. I had to stop the growl that threatened to escape my throat.

"I see that you're not that happy to see me," the man continued, "I know that you weren't expecting to see me for a long time. But, what can I say? I got out for good behavior."

Good behavior, my ass. I took a step backwards, moving Bella with me. The man took one step forward.

"Don't run from me, Jr," the man said, "Come on. You have to recognize me."

"Edward," Bella said urgently from behind me. She grabbed my hand and squeezed it comfortingly.

"Yes, love?" I asked lowly.

"Who is that man?" she asked. I could hear the fear in her voice.

"My father," I spat, venom filling those two small words.


	10. Scared

"My father," Edward spat, hatred filling his voice.

I looked up at the man standing a few feet from us. I didn't know much about Edward's past. I'd been told that his mother was dead and hat his father was in jail, but that was it. I didn't know any details.

Looking at the man, I decided that I didn't really _want_ to know. His looks weren't the intimidating but the atmosphere around him scared the hell out of me. Edward was tense and I could sense his fear. I immediately put my arms around him, trying to comfort him.

He looked down at me and I stared into his eyes, seeing all his pain and confusion. Edward's father just stood there, watching us.

"We're gonna be okay, Edward," I whispered.

"Bella, I love you," he said.

"I love you too Edward," I answered.

Edward's father began clapping.

"Good job, son," he said, "You can take her with us when we go back home."

"Back home?" Edward asked incredulously.

"Of course, son," Edward's father answered, "You're coming home with me."

"Never," Edward snapped.

"I'm your father. You have no choice."

"Carlisle is my legal guardian."

At Edward's last sentence, his father visibly tensed. He looked pissed now.

"Listen good, son. You are coming home with me and that's final."

"No."

"Yes."

"No."

"_Yes._"

"STOP IT!!!"

Edward and his father both stared at me after I'd yelled. I didn't even know why I yelled. I'd just wanted them to stop fighting. It looked like this conversation was physically hurting Edward. I wanted both of them to just stop it.

I kept my arms around Edward before turning to his father.

"I think you should leave," I said.

"And why do you think that?" the man asked.

"I don't like you," I answered truthfully.

"Damn," he said, "Son, you sure got a fine one there. Likes to speak her mind, eh? But… you know, little girl, it's usually best to keep your thoughts to yourself if they're not nice."

I took a step forward, hands on my hips.

"Is that a threat?" I demanded.

And suddenly, I was facing Edward, with someone's arm around my neck and something cold and hard pressing against the other side of my neck, against my vein.

"Now, now, precious, no sudden movements," a slimy voice hissed into my ear.

"LET HER GO!" Edward thundered.

"I'd rather not," his dad said, still holding me in a headlock with a knife at my throat, "I'm sure I'd take even more pleasure in taking her than I did with your mother."

I tried to take a deep breath but every time I did, the knife pressed harder against my vein. I think Edward took a step forward because his dad _tsk_ed.

"Don't get any closer, son, or she will get hurt," he threatened.

He pressed the knife harder into my vein and I felt sharp pain as it broke shallowly through the skin. I whimpered and I'm sure Edward caught it.

All three of us jumped at a louder, more playful voice coming from inside the house.

"Hey," Emmet boomed, "You two are taking an awful lot of time. What are you two do-"

Emmet's voice had been getting closer as he was speaking. I guessed that he'd been walking out of the house and when he suddenly broke off, he had finally seen what was going on outside.

"Holy shit!" he yelled, "Bella!"

"Bella," Edward's father whispered in my ear, "What a beautiful name."

I whimpered lowly, but everyone heard it.

"Let go of her!" Emmet yelled again.

He, too, must have taken a step forward because the knife at my neck made my shallow cut a little deeper. I closed my eyes and clenched my jaw against the pain.

"Emmet," I commanded, "Go back inside. Get Ethan out of here."

"But, Bella-"

"Emmet!" I snapped, "Just do it. Take care of him. Go. Now. Call the police."

I heard running footsteps and then yelling inside the house. I tried to twist out of Edward's father's hold, but it wasn't working.

"Silly child," he said in my ear, "You won't be getting away from me that easily."

I opened my eyes to see Edward, frozen and staring at me.

"Edward," I said, "Edward, listen to me. It's going to be all right. Everything is going to be okay. Breathe, baby, breathe."

I saw Edward take a deep breath and then another. His eyes were dark with worry.

"I think I've had enough of this game," his father said, "Why don't I just kill the both of you now so I have a head start on the po-po."

"Wait!" Edward said, "What if I go with you? Will you let her go?"

"Silly Edward," his father answered, "Of course not. She's seen and heard too much already. Besides, that offer doesn't stand anymore. You refused and so you'll have to deal with the other option."

"Please," Edward begged, "Please, don't hurt Bella. Don't kill her. She doesn't deserve it. Please, father, I love her."

"And so your love for her will be what killed her," his father answered coldly.

"Please!" Edward yelled, "She has something to live for! She's got a son."

"Interesting, I didn't think she was a slut."

I flinched at the man's words.

"She is not a slut!" Edward yelled, "She was raped!"

"Lucky man," his father mused.

Edward screamed a curse that sounded a lot like a growl.

"I see you still have a temper," his father stated.

"I'm. Going. To. Kill. You," Edward forced out between clenched teeth.

"If you make any move towards me, your girlfriend is dead. Well, she's dead either way. She just dies much sooner than she has to if you take even a baby step towards me."

I tried to struggle against Edward's father again but to, once more, no avail. He made my neck wound deeper.

"Scratch that. She's starting to get a little annoying. I'll just kill her now," his father announced.

"No!" Edward yelled.

I felt his father slid the knife across my throat slowly and lightly, keeping my hopes up, to the other side of my neck. But then, he put more pressure on it and pulled it across my throat savagely. It felt cold for a second before the pain hit me. I vaguely heard a _thud_ and fists connecting to flesh before the pain took over me and I fell into unconsciousness.

* * *

**IMPORTANT AN!**

**SERIOUSLY YOU NEED TO READ THIS!!!**

**Okay.**

**So, this was the second to last chapter of this fanfic.**

**Next chapter will be the last and it will be the Epilogue.**

**Mmkay?**

**I hoped you liked it.**

**Review, please!**

**-Jules**


	11. Epilogue: Healed

It has been 10 years now, since those series of events unfolded. Edward and I were now 26 and Ethan was 13. I, obviously and miraculously, survived what had happened that day Edward's father, Edward Sr., came back to visit.

It turned out that Edward Sr. had actually escaped from prison instead of having been let out for good behavior. I'd found that out after I'd waken up in the hospital with my neck wrapped in stitches and gauze about three weeks after Edward Sr. had slit my throat.

After he'd slit my throat, he'd been tackled and promptly beaten up by Edward, Emmet, Jasper, Carlisle, _and_ a little pixie named Alice. Apparently, _Alice_ was the one that had to be restrained from killing Edward Sr. The five of them had managed to knock Edward Sr. out long enough for the police to arrive. Carlisle had, of course, begun treating me...

After I'd woken up, I'd also learned about Edward's past. When he was 10, he'd witnessed his father beat his mother, Elizabeth, to death. His father had almost gone for him, too, but Edward had called the cops and they'd taken his father away.

He'd been supposed to serve a life sentence, but after what he did to me, they put him on death row. I sensed that that was painful for Edward. But he was strong. Edward was definitely strong.

Well, after Edward Sr. had slit my throat, my own family problems were apparently fixed. Charlie divorced Renee and won full control of the company and custody of me. Renee had custody of Jessica and Charlie said he'd help them when they needed it.

Charlie was an all around good guy. Apparently, whenever Renee and Jessica had beaten me, he'd wanted to help but he knew that Renee would hurt him too. He still hasn't stopped blaming himself for the abuse I went through.

I loved Charlie, and Ethan did too. Ethan loved it when Charlie baby-sat, mostly because Charlie let him do whatever he wants. So, everything was okay after that incident.

Ethan also loved Edward very much. When I'd been asleep, Ethan would refuse to leave my side. My poor baby wouldn't eat or sleep and demanded that I wake up. Edward had fixed that, though, by carrying him around everywhere, telling him everything was going to be alright, telling him he loved him, telling him that I loved him, and staying by his side while Ethan stayed by my side. Ethan felt safe with Edward and was thrilled when he had found out Edward would be his father.

Edward and I have never fallen out of love. We have never gotten tired of each other. He proposed to me the night of graduation and I gladly accepted. He and I took over Charlie's company when Charlie had offered it to us. We were a deadly duo. Nobody could resist our son and us.

Well, I guess I should mention that I am also expecting. Yes, I got pregnant. We are going to be having twins, fraternal if Carlisle's ultrasound was correct. I am currently in my second trimester, my fifth month.

We are ecstatic and so is Ethan. He's excited to be an older brother. I'm excited to be a mother on my own terms, not that I resented Ethan. As I said before, I could never bring myself to regret Ethan.

Everything is okay, now, you could say. I'm definitely happy and all of the scars on my arms have now just gone away. The scars on my heart have also been healed and Edward has told me that I've healed the scars on his heart too. I am also proud to say that I still write songs too. I am most proud of the song I wrote about my life. Here are the lyrics:

_**We're breaking the cycle  
We're breaking the routine  
We're finding ourselves  
For the first time  
We're letting go  
Of all our apprehensions  
We're letting go  
Of all the expectations**_

_**Too young to live  
Too old to die  
Nothing's good enough  
In this life  
Went in without eyes wide open  
Left with our souls unbroken**_

_**We're breaking the cycle  
We're breaking the routine  
We're finding ourselves  
For the first time  
We're letting go  
Of all our apprehensions  
We're letting go  
Of all the expectations**_

_**Sands of time  
Piling up on us  
Interestingly  
As the world stands still,  
we pass it by  
To hurt is to risk to love**_

_**We're breaking the cycle  
We're breaking the routine  
We're finding ourselves  
For the first time  
We're letting go  
Of all our apprehensions  
We're letting go  
Of all the expectations**_

_**Dawn to dusk  
Sunset to sunrise  
What makes you stronger, kills you  
in the process  
You'll be the giver  
I'll be the taker  
Love gone right  
Tonight**_

_**We're breaking the cycle  
We're breaking the routine  
We're finding ourselves  
For the first time  
We're letting go  
Of all our apprehensions  
We're letting go  
Of all the expectations**_

I am also proud to say that I've let Linkin Park use that song as a song on one of their albums **(AN, I made that part up)**I'd never thought that my life could be as perfect as it is now. I'd never thought that I'd be happy, but I was wrong. I never thought I'd be healed but look at me now. Look at my husband, Edward, now.

As I lay in bed right now next to my husband and stroking my swollen stomach that held my twins, I remember the lesson I learned throughout my life. You can't give up. If you give up, all is lost. I realized that ten years ago. And I'm glad I did. I am also glad to say that, finally, we are…

Healed.

* * *

**It's officially over guys!**

**I'm going to change its status to Completed now.**

**Thank you to all you readers who stuck with me.**

**Please give me one last final review.**

**Oh and all of the songs that I used in this fanfic are originals... **

**So yeah.**

**Just wanted to get that out there.  
**

**And if you have any questions, please ask me in a review and I'll reply as soon as I can.**

**Thanks, guys!**

**I love you!**

**And please look forward to my next all human fan fic that I will start writing shortly. :]**

**Love you, guys!**

**And thank you so much for your support!**

**-Jules  
**


	12. After story AN

**I added a bit to the last chapter.**

**So, reread it just to get more details. :]**

**Once again, I'd like to thank you all for reading.**

**Once again, I love you all!**

**And, I'd just like to add that yes, I wrote all of the songs in this fan fic.**

**They're not that good but I didn't want to use other band's songs and say Bella wrote them or something. :]**

**Anyways, reread the last chapter, mmkay?**

**Thank you!**

**-Jules**


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